t LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. I 

I' ^/ ,AiS*# 

| UNITED STATES OF AMERICA. J 



THE 



METHODIST HYMN-BOOK 



ITS ASSOCIATIONS. 



BY / 

JjrEORGE j. y> T E Y E N S O N , 



WITH COMPLETE LIST OF J. & C. WESLEY'S POETICAL WORKS. 



LONDON : 

HAMILTON, ADAMS, AND CO. 

SOLD ALSO AT 66, PATERNOSTER ROW. 

NEW YORK: PHILIP PHILLIPS, 37, UNION SQUARE. 

1870. 



Entered according to Act of Congress, in the year 1870, by Philip Phillips, ir 
the Clerks' Office of the U. S. District Court for the Southern District of Ohio. 



PREFACE. 



The Founders of Methodism were well aware of the im- 
portance of hymns and psalms as aids to a religious life. 
John Wesley published a small volume for this purpose, 
before the first Society was formed ; and during the year 
1739 he published a much larger volume, containing 
selections from various authors, with many of his brother 
Charles's original hymns. This book reached a third 
edition the same year. The number of Charles Wesley's 
hymns, written and published up to about ten years before 
his death, was not less than six thousand. Nearly all these 
poetical tracts were in extensive demand, some of them 
were often reprinted, and large editions were sold both in 
England and Ireland. 

From the very beginning of Methodism, these hymns 
have been made an abundant blessing to the thousands of 
readers into whose hands they have fallen, sometimes as 
helps to devotion for individual Christians, or in the ser- 
vice of song — at the out-door preaching as well as in the 
more social means of grace. They have been largely used 
in the work of conversion, in relieving daily toil, and espe- 
cially in times of suffering, bereavement, and death. More 
than five hundred instances of their usefulness are recorded 
in this volume, and above twice that number of incidents 



vi Preface, 

could have been given if the plan of the work had per- 
mitted. In these the advantages of early devotion to the 
service of God, and of attachment to the Methodist class 
and prayer meetings, will be seen to be a marked feature. 
The Index will direct the reader to the pages of the 
Methodist Magazine, where fuller biographical details will 
be found respecting each person, and these may serve 
to illustrate another advantage arising from religion — the 
tendency which it has to prolong life, a large proportion 
of those whose names are there recorded having lived 
to threescore years and ten, while not a few have reached 
fourscore, and some have even passed through the whole 
course of a century. 

From a conviction that the historical, biographical, and 
explanatory information which the work contains will bd 
found useful, not only to Methodists, but to the religious* 
public generally, and that the book will be especially 
welcome for Sunday reading, and as a suitable work for 
presentation, the author commends it to all lovers a, 
Wesley's Hymns, in the hope that it may be deemed in 
some respects a not unworthy companion to those invalu* 
able compositions. 

The author acknowledges his obligations to the Rev* 
Elijah Hoole, D.D., the Rev. William Butters, and other 
friends, for contributions which have added considerably t(> 
the interest of the volume. 



London, November 17, 1869. 



En jflemoriam 



CHARLES WESLEY, HYMNOLOGIST. 



"Thou sealest up the sum, full of wisdom, and perfect in beauty. . . . Thou 
wast upon the holy mountain of God ; thou hast walked up and down in the 
midst of the stones of fire."— Ezek. xxviii. 12 and 14. 

Bard ! inspired by love divine, 
Hallowing influence benign, 
Ever vital, ever rife, 
Throbbing warm with inner life ; 
Holy unction, quenchless fire, 
All concentre in thy lyre ; 
Wreathe the laurel round thy brow, 
Israel's sweetest singer thou. 

Who in like majestic lays 
Ever voiced Jehovah's praise ? 
Earth is choral with thy songs, 
From her countless million-tongues ; 
Girdling the great world around, 
Wheresoever man is found, 
Hearts are melted, harps are strung, 
And thy jubilates sung. 

Who beside has hymn'd like thee 
Jesu's death and agony, 
Jesus on the altar bound, 
Jesus crucified and crown' d ; 
He of loving, tender heart, 
Meekly bearing sorrow's smart, 
He, omnipotent to save, 
Conqueror, rising from the grave ? 



viii 



In Memoriam 



Thou hast sounded an alarm, 
Broken Satan's hellish charm ; 
Sinners, starting from their sleep, 
Thou hast woo'd to pray and weep ; 
Spoken gentle words which prove 
Winning as a mother's love ; 
Softest sympathy is thine, 
Pouring in the oil and wine. 

Tenderest pathos, comfort sweet, 
Blending in concretion meet ; 
Quickening power and life divine 
Here mysteriously conjoin ; 
Joy unspeakable, and peace, 
Flow together and increase ; 
Streams of mercy, deep and broad 
As the "plenitude of God." 

Words with wondrous thought combined, 
All euphonious, all refined, 
Pure and exquisitely bright, 
As a diamond's flash of light ; 
Nature's everlasting rhyme, 
Welcome as the evening-chime, 
More divine to listening ears 
Than the music of the spheres. 

Faith and courage, at thy word, 
Fight the battles of the Lord, 
Burnish'd shields and swords of flame 
Clash in war for Jesu's name ; 
Onward in the glorious strife ! 
Onward ! grasp the crown of life ! 
Battle-hymns are heard around, 
And the victor-warriors crown'd. 

O'er affliction's waste of woe, 
Where the weeds of sorrow grow, 
Come thy angel-hymns of love 
Like soft whisperings from above ; 
Gladsome songs and bliss are given, 
Grand rehearsals, hymns of heaven, 
While on Pisgah's top we stand 
Gazing o'er the promised land. 



Charles Wesley, Hymnologist. 



ix 



At the death-bed, o'er the grave, 
Where the sable banners wave, 
Thou hast struck the chord of peace, 
Sung the dirge of sweet release ; 
Changed the slow funereal kneli 
Into a triumphant swell, 
Until gloomy death grows bright 
In the resurrection's light. 

As we pass the surging flood 
" Hanging on the arm of God," 
Songs of victory, bursts of joy, 
Still our raptured tongues employ ; 
Songs for life, and songs for death, 
Shout we with our latest breath, 
Burning words of victory given, 
Last on earth and first in heaven. 

Bard of bards ! in peerless light 

On the empyrean height, 

All surpassing, all above, 

In thy canticles of love, 

Joining hands with those who dwell 

Where eternal anthems swell, 

Now we wreathe thy deathless brow, 

Israel's sweetest singer thou. 

Benjamin Gough, 



MOUNTFIELD, FAVERSHAM, 

October 1869. 



THE 



METHODIST HYMN-BOOK 

AND ITS ASSOCIATIONS. 



Methodist societies and congregations have always been 
impressed and influenced greatly by the power of sacred 
song. This was a part of divine worship in which both 
John and Charles Wesley took a lively interest from the com- 
mencement of their evangelistic labours ; and as they both 
possessed the gift and spirit of sacred poetry, they applied 
themselves to the composition of hymns adapted to the use and 
edification of those who united with them in the worship of 
God. Charles Wesley will ever be considered to be the poet of 
Methodism. In the early years of his public life he was almost 
daily exercised in the composition of hymns. His thoughts 
flowed in numbers, and his deep feelings of joy, confidence, and 
zeal could find no adequate expression but in verse. His hymns 
were not the productions of a lively imagination, suggested by 
the beauties of nature ; nor were they the fruits of hard mental 
toil. They were the spontaneous effusions of his heart, prompted 
by love and gratitude to God, and they testify to his joyous 
confidence in the divine truth and mercy, and to his yearning 
affection for the souls of redeemed men everywhere. Their 
wide-spread and enduring popularity is chiefly due to their 
eminently experimental and scriptural character, and the dis- 
tinctness in their statement of doctrine. 

No merely human compositions can compare with them for 
the universality of their use, and for their variety and adapta- 
bility to all the wants and circumstances of life. Both John and 

A 



2 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. i. 



Charles Wesley wrote freely on important subjects previously 
to their conversion, but nearly all their hymns date their origin 
to incidents which followed the great spiritual change in their 
minds. Is it their purpose to state the utter depravity of human 
nature ? or the freeness and fulness of the gospel plan of salva- 
tion ? or a sense of grateful obligation to the Giver of all good 
for countless mercies received ? — they express themselves in 
verse, with a simplicity, purity, and power, which have never 
been surpassed by any uninspired writer. Apart from the many 
beauties of sentiment and diction which abound in the sacred 
compositions of the Wesleys, they contain many historical 
allusions and biographical references, which, when intelligently 
explained, greatly increase the interest which is felt in writings 
so widely known and so extensively used. The design of these 
notes is to try and make the Hymn-book more instructive and 
more conducive to general edification. 

The addition of several hundred illustrative incidents of the 
practical use of the hymns, will greatly enhance the value of 
these compositions. 

Hymn i.* — " Oh for a thousand tongues to sing." — For the Anni- 
versary Day of One's Conversion. — Tune, Birstal, 1761. 
This hymn was written in May 1739, and was first published 
in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740. The interest which 
attaches to this hymn, and the happy circumstance which it 
commemorates, may justify a statement of the particulars. 
Charles Wesley, at the time of his conversion, Sunday, May 21, 
1738, was confined by a severe attack of pleurisy to his room in 
the house of Mr Bray, brazier, in Little Britain. In his journal 
he writes, — 

"Friday, May 19, 1738. — At five this morning the pain and 

* The original title of each hymn will be given throughout, after the 
first line, as far as it can be ascertained ; those in the supplement will 
be taken from that work, when not found with the originals. The 
tunes named after the titles are those chosen by Mr Wesley, and printed, 
in the "Sacred Melody," 1761, or the "Sacred Harmony," 1781. 
The last named work is sometimes designated, though incorrectly, as 
" Lampe's Tunes to the Great Festival Hymns." The " Sacred Har- 
mony " was republished in 1789, without the words of the hymns, and 
in a much smaller form. Tunes of subsequent date are such as were 
chosen by the editors of the Hymn- Book, after Mr Wesley's death in 
1 791. 



Hy. i.] 



a7id its Associations. 



3 



difficulty in breathing returned. The surgeon was sent for, but 
I fell asleep before he could bleed me a second time. At seven 
Mrs Turner came, and told me I should not rise from that bed 
till I believed. I believed her saying, and asked, 4 Has God, 
then, bestowed faith upon you ?' • Yes, He has.' Feeling an 
anticipation of joy upon her account, and thanking Christ as I 
could, I looked for Him all night with prayers and sighs, and 
unceasing desires. 

"Saturday, May 20. — I waked much disappointed, and con- 
tinued all day in great dejection, which the Sacrament did not 
in the least abate. Nevertheless God would not suffer me to 
doubt the truth of His promises." He then opened a Testa- 
ment, and read the first words that presented, Matt. ix. 1 : 
" And He entered into a ship," &c. It was a long while before 
he could read this through for tears of joy. 

The Day of Pentecost. — "Sunday, May 21, 1738. — I waked 
in hope and expectation of His coming. At nine my brother 
and some friends came and sang a hymn to the Holy Ghost. 
My comfort and hope were hereby increased. In about half an 
hour they went. I betook myself to prayer ; the substance as 
follows :— ' O Jesus, Thou hast said, " I will come unto you 
Thou hast said, " I will send the Comforter unto you Thou 
hast said, " My Father and I will come unto you, and make our 
abode with you." Thou art God, who canst not lie ; I wholly 
rely upon Thy most true promise ; accomplish it in Thy time 
and manner.' Having said this, I was composing myself to 
sleep in quietness and peace, when I heard one come in and 
say, ' In the name of Jesus of Nazareth, arise, and believe, and 
thou shalt be healed of all thy infirmities.' The words struck 
' me to the heart. I lay musing and trembling. With a strange 
palpitation of heart, I said, yet feared to say, 6 1 believe, I 
believe V n Mr Bray told Mr Wesley fhat his sister had been 
ordered by Christ to say those words to him. By degrees the 
darkness of his unbelief was cleared away ; and immediately he 
was thoroughly convinced, he fell to intercession. Looking into 
the Scriptures, he read, " And now, Lord, what is my hope ? 
Truly my hope is even in Thee. ; ' And again, " He hath put a 
new song in my mouth, even a thanksgiving unto our God." Mr 
Wesley adds, " I now found myself at peace with God, and 
rejoiced in hope of loving Christ." 

On the first anniversary of this happy event the hymn was 



4 



TJie Metlwdist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. i. 



written which is now placed first in the "Methodist Hymn- 
Book." It is the first also in the collections used by other sec- 
tions of the Methodist family. 

The original hymn extends to eighteen verses, the first of 
which commences thus : — 

" Glory to God, and praise, and love 
Be ever, ever given 

and the author proceeds to say, " on that glad day the glorious 
Sun of Righteousness arose" on his benighted soul, "and filled it 
with repose." The doctrine of present and instant salvation is 
plainly stated, and was fully demonstrated in his subsequent 
life. The first six stanzas of the original hymn, and the 
fifteenth and sixteenth, were omitted by John Wesley when 
he selected the hymn with which he commenced his collection. 
The fact of its being the first hymn in the book has caused it to 
be as widely known as any hymn which was ever written. It 
forms an appropriate introductory hymn ; and it occupies a 
prominent place in other collections besides Mr Wesley's. 

The whole composition reads like a sketch of the Christian 
career of a new-born soul ; it is full of Christ, and glowing with 
the desire to commend His love to sinners. When the poet 
consulted Peter Bohler about praising Christ, Bohler replied, 
" Had I a thousand tongues, I would praise Him with them 
all." This memorable utterance of the pious Moravian, Charles 
Wesley has enshrined in this glorious hymn ; and the same 
sentiment is embodied in some German hymns, as well as in 
one by the Rev. H. F. Lyte. In this hymn, as also in most of 
the other instances in which Mr John Wesley abridged his 
brother's compositions, we observe, once for all, that the best 
verses are selected. 

Mr Alexander Mather, who was sent out by Mr Wesley to 
travel at the Conference of 1757, during the same year visited a 
poor condemned malefactor in Nottingham Gaol, who had been 
so hardened that he was resolved to be a devil. Mr Mather 
was himself a young convert, and his zeal in trying to rescue 
this poor criminal was signally owned of God. On the morning 
of execution he accompanied the wretched man to the scaffold, 
erected at the outskirts of the town, " where," writes Mr Mather, 
" we sung part of a hymn — 

' Oh for a thousand tongues to sing.' 



Hy. i.] 



and its Associations. 



5 



During the first three verses he seemed lifted up, but when he 
Came to the words in the fourth verse — 

1 His blood can make the foulest clean, 
His blood avail'd for me/ 
then he rejoiced with joy unspeakable and full of glory." 

In the year 1837 Mr John Lawson, a devout local preacher in 
the Leeds Circuit, was conducting the Sabbath morning service. 
Soon after entering the pulpit he became unwell, and called on 
a friend to give out a hymn. Some delay arose, during which 
Mr Lawson called out, " The first hymn — 

' Oh for a thousand tongues to sing.' " 
Before the last verse was sung the dying Christian soldier fell 
in the pulpit, and in doing so he cried out, " Sing, John, sing ! 
and an hour afterwards he entered Paradise. 

We read in the Wesley an Methodist Magazine for 1862 of a 
North American Indian chief in the wilds of the Hudson's Bay 
Territory, who only a few moments before his spirit fled to 
heaven was exceedingly happy whilst singing a free translation 
of the hymn commencing — 

" Oh for a thousand tongues to sing," 
and, having finished the hymn, he immediately expired. 

Mrs Green, of Southport, formerly of Bolton, was a member 
of the Methodist Society fifty-three years, and she remembered 
with lively gratitude the good she received under a sermon 
preached by the Rev. John Wesley, in Bolton. During the 
protracted affliction which preceded her death, she frequently 
prayed, " Come, Lord Jesus ; come quickly." On the day pre- 
vious to her departure she repeated with peculiar delight the 
verse — 

" Oh for a thousand tongues to sing," &c. 

Mrs Clarkson, of Cheetham Hill, wife of James Clarkson, Esq., 
was a member of the Methodist Society more than forty years, 
but owing to the extreme weakness of her faith was unable to 
realise a clear sense of her acceptance with God till within a 
few hours of her death. When she obtained the blessing, she 
called on all around her bed to join her in celebrating redeem- 
ing love in the verse commencing — , 

" Oh for a thousand tongues to sing, " &c. 
Her end was peace. 

Mrs Collier, of Leicester, was the daughter of godly Method- 



6 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. i. 



ists, and the wife of a local preacher. She was convinced of 
sin at the age of fourteen, by reading the life of Miss Bingham. 
She joined her mother's class, and became an exemplary- 
Christian. During her last illness, the fear of death distressed 
her ; but ere the end came, joy succeeded fear, and her happi- 
ness was abounding. Amongst her last words were, " I rest 
sweetly in the arms of Jesus. I have done with the world : I 
am going home : I shall see Jesus as. He is. Glory, glory be to 
God ! " And then with surprising energy she repeated the 
verse, commencing — 

"Jesus, the name to sinners dear," &c. 

On the morning of her death her peace seemed to flow like a 
river. As the end approached, she twice raised her hand, 
faintly breathing out, " Praise the Lord ; n and so she fell asleep 
in Jesus. 

Mrs Mary Day, of Whitefield Street, London North Circuit, 
feared the Lord from her youth. She bore a long affliction 
with patient resignation. As the closing scene drew nigh, her 
faith and hope increased, and with emphasis she repeated the 
lines — 

et Jesus, the name that charms our fears. 
That bids our sorrows cease/' &c. 

Her last words were, " Jesus is precious." 

Anthony Triffit, of Stillingfeet, near York, was convinced of 
sin whilst hearing a local preacher declare the truth as it is in 
Jesus. At a love-feast held in York, soon afterwards, he found 
peace with God, whilst the congregation was singing the lines — 

" He breaks the power of canceled sin, 
He sets the prisoner free," &c. 

He became a useful local preacher, and was transferred into the 
separated ministry, in which he laboured with acceptance for 
fifty years. Among his last words were " Blessed Jesus." 

Thomas Molineux was born in 1789. Having a pious 
mother, he was early taught the way to heaven, and at the age 
of ten years enjoyed a clear sense of the pardon of sin. As a 
youth he was appointed to lead a class, and at that time regu- 
larly attended, at Madeley, Mrs Fletcher's Sunday morning 
meeting, and at her request made his first attempt to preach 
the gospel in 181 5. He was an earnest, industrious, godly 
man ; meeting in class every Sunday at five o'clock in the 



HY. 2.] 



and its Associations. 



7 



morning. Throughout life, and in death, he manifested entire 
submission to the will of God. On the verge of mortality, he 
said to a friend, who asked how he felt, " Free from grief ; free 
from care ; free from sin." To one of his daughters, shortly 
before his exit, he replied — 

" His blood can make the foulest clean, 
His blood avails for me.' 

With a countenance beaming with hope and joy he fell asleep 
in Jesus. 

Peter Bentley was born at Helmsley, February 25, 1786. He 
was blest with godly parents, who early led him to associate 
with the Methodists, and to meet in class. Whilst attending 
this blessed means of grace, and the lines were being sung, 

" He breaks the power of canceled sin, 
He sets the prisoner free," &c, 

his chains fell off, and he broke forth in prayer and praise. As 
an exciseman, he lived in the fear of God, and peacefully changed 
mortality for life, at Baldersly, near Thirsk, April 24, 1859. 

Hymn 2. — "Come, sinners, to the gospel feast." — The Great 
Supper (Luke xiv. 16-24). — Tune, Invitation, 1761. 

This is one of Charles Wesley's finest compositions, offering 
to all a free and full salvation. It was first published in 
1747, and forms No. 50 of " Hymns for those that seek and 
those that have Redemption in the blood of Jesus Christ ; " a 
tract of sixty-eight pages, containing fifty-two hymns. The 
original has twenty-four stanzas, only nine of which Mr Wesley 
has selected, and of these he has made various alterations in 
four of the verses, some of which are undoubtedly improve- 
ments. Mr James Nichols printed an edition of this hymn, 
with notes from the author's MS., in 1842. The first edition of 
the Redemption Hymns appeared in 1747; the fourth edition 
in 1755 ; the 7th edition in 1765. The hymn which imme- 
diately follows this in the original tract is the well-known 
Pilgrim's Hymn, " How Happy is the Pilgrim's lot ! " The 
tune here affixed is that used in the " Great Festival Hymns " 
by Lampe. 

Sarah Baker, of Culmstock, Tiverton, lived more than forty 
years ignorant of God and unconcerned about her soul's salva- 
tion. In the year 1799, she was going one Sabbath afternoon 



8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 5. 



to church. Mr Rouse, a local preacher, was preaching in a 
house on her way ; from curiosity, she stayed to listen at the 
window, and it pleased the Lord to apply the word preached 
with power to her heart, and to give her to feel the need of a 
Saviour. As the preacher was giving out the words of the hymn — 

" This is the time, no more delay," &c., 

she resolved to accept the offered mercy : she sought the Lord, 
and found Him, to the joy of her heart. She never lost her 
confidence in God ; and, though poor in this world's goods, 
she was rich in faith, giving glory to God. In great peace she 
fell asleep in Jesus, in a good old age. 

Hymn 3. — " O all that pass by, To Jesus draw near." — On God's 
Everlasting Love. — Tune, Tallis, 1761. 

This hymn was first published in Charles Wesley's tract of 
"Hymns on God's Everlasting Love," 174.1, in which it is the 
third. It is copied entire, with only the alteration of one word ; 
"and" is printed for "of" in the fourth line of the fifth stanza. 
This was a favourite subject in Charles Wesley's early sermons, 
and the hymn was often sung by the first Methodist converts. 

Hymn 4,- — " Ho ! every one that thirsts, draw nigh." — The 
Fifty-Fifth Chapter of Isaiah. — Tune, Angel's Hymn, 1761. 

The original of this fine and dignified paraphrase consists 
of thirty-one stanzas, and appeared first in 1740, in Charles 
Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," where it is the first 
hymn in the third part of the book. The entire chapter is para- 
phrased ; but John Wesley selected only the first nine verses, 
and these are printed as the fourth hymn in his collection, with 
the substitution of "ye" for "you" in the sixth verse. 

Hymn 5. — " Thy faithfulness, Lord, Each moment we find." — 
On God's Everlasting Love. — Tune, Newcastle, 1761. 

This forms the second in Charles Wesley's "Hymns on 
God's Everlasting Love," 1741. The first verse of the original 
is omitted; the word "foulest" is changed for "vilest" in the 
first stanza ; and in the third, " If sin is your burden," " is " is 
changed into " be." 

Mrs Ellen Ince, of Lowton, Lancashire, mother of Mr 
William Ince, late of Southampton Street, London, was born in 



Hy. 8.] 



and its Associations. 



9 



1769, and in early life was convinced of sin, chiefly by means 
the Liturgy of the Church of England. In reply to her in- 
quiry after the way of salvation, she was taken to a Methodist 
chapel, where she soon found peace through believing in Jesus. 
She walked in the fear of the Lord for sixty-seven years. Of 
her thirteen children, nine preceded her to heaven. The 
death of her last surviving son affected her much. A few days 
before her death, she said of her son, " What a glorious state he 
is in, free from his weak and suffering body, in the presence of 
his Lord ! We shall not be parted long." On the morning of 
the day of the first anniversary of her son's interment, she read 
the Scriptures for two hours, chiefly in Isaiah ; and on closing 
the book, she exclaimed to her daughter, " Glory be to God in 
the highest for His great love in dying for sinners !" Later in 
the day, having read her hymn-book for some time, she repeated 
the lines — 

" We all are forgiven for Jesus's sake, 
Our title to heaven, His merits we take ; " 
and then she added, " Now let me rest. I think I can go to 
sleep." And in a few minutes she sweetly fell alseep in Jesus, 
without even a sigh. 

Hymn 6. — " Sinners, turn, why will ye die ?" 
„ 7. — " Let the beasts their breath resign." 
„ 8. — " What could your Redeemer do." 
" Why will ye die, O house of Israel?" (Ezek. xviii. 31.) 

Tune, Hotham, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's " Hymns on God's Everlasting Love " ap- 
peared first in 1741, the second edition in 1756, the third in 

1770, the fourth in 1792. The tract consists of two parts, of 
thirty-six pages and forty-eight pages, respectively. To the first 
was originally added a singular poem entitled, " The Cry of a 
Reprobate." This will be found reprinted in the first volume of 
Jackson's Life of Charles Wesley. That which forms No. 13 
in the second part, is reprinted in Wesley's Collection as three 
separate hymns. It forms a long, comprehensive, and affecting 
inquiry, based on the prophet Ezekiel's words, " Why will ye 
die, O house of Israel ?" Four out of the sixteen stanzas of the 
original are omitted. There are only three words altered, except- 
ing that in several instances " you " and " ye " are interchanged 
by John Wesley, in order to give greater emphasis to his 



10 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. io. 



brother's words. Mr Bunting suggests that, as the seventh 
hymn is both " prolix and prosaic, it would be better left out." 

Hymn 9. — " Sinners, obey the gospel word/' — " Come, for all 
things are now ready' 9 — Tune, The Invitation, 1761. 

The original forms hymn 155 in the first volume of " Hymns 
and Sacred Poems/' 1749, by C. Wesley. It is an exact reprint. 
A present salvation for every penitent sinner is the poet's theme, 
and he represents the whole three Persons in the Trinity as 
waiting to welcome sinners to the Saviour. There is a detailed 
pathos and simplicity in the hymn which give much beauty to 
the poetry. Mr Bunting suggests that this hymn would be 
improved by dividing it at the fifth verse. 

Speaking of these early volumes of the Wesley poetry, and 
of John Wesley in particular, the Rev. Samuel Bradburn once 
observed, " John Wesley had a fine taste for poetry, and com- 
posed, himself, many of our hymns ; but he told me that he and 
his brother Charles agreed not to distinguish their hymns from 
each other's." This rule was observed by them for just ten years ; 
but in 1749, Charles Wesley published, on his own account, the 
two volumes from which the ninth hymn is chosen. This work 
contains a large number of the hymns in the collection of 1 780, 
now in use throughout the connexion. In John Wesley's " Plain 
Account of Christian Perfection'' the author makes the follow- 
ing statement: — "In the year 1749, my brother printed two 
volumes of ' Hymns and Sacred Poems.' As I did not 
see these before they were published, there were some things 
in them which I did not approve of. But I quite approved 
of the main of the hymns on this head — 4 Present Salvation 
and Perfect Love.'" It is important that these two testimonies 
should be recorded. This hymn is the first which is extracted 
from those volumes. 

Hymn 10. — "Ye thirsty for God, to Jesus give ear." — 
John vii. 37. — Tune, Newcastle, 1761. 

The original forms No. 432 in Charles Wesley's "Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," vol. 2, which first appeared in 1762. The work 
was considerably altered, and in that form it was republished 
in two volumes in 1794? six years after the author's death. The 
only alteration made is in the fourth line, which reads thus— 
" The sense of salvation accepting through grace." 



HY. 12.] 



and its Associations. 



ii 



Hymn ii.— " God, the offended God Most High."— "Now then 
we are ambassadors for Christ? &c. (2 Cor. v. 20.) — Tune, 
Canon, 1761. 

The original forms No. 20 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns on 
the Trinity," first published in 1767. The only alteration made 
is in the last line of the third verse, where " goodness n in the 
original is changed to " mercy 

Hymn 12.— " Come, ye that love the Lord."— Heavenly joy on 
earth. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

This hymn was written by Dr Watts, and first published in 
July 1707. It forms No. 30 in the author's second book. Mr 
Wesley has made judicious alterations in eleven lines, and the 
original is two verses longer. It is placed as the first hymn in 
the second section of Mr Wesley's collection, under the head 
of " Describing the Pleasantness of Religion." The hymn has 
always been a favourite ; the simplicity of its language and its 
natural imagery have greatly aided its popularity. Every verse 
of it has been used as dying testimony. 

Bartholomew Calvin, a converted Stockbridge Indian, died 
in his eightieth year, saying, " My trust is in the merits of the 
Lord Jesus Christ. Sing at my funeral — 

' Come, ye that love the Lord, 

And let your joys be known/ " &c. 

He continued to pray whilst speech remained, and gently sunk 
into the arms of death without a struggle. 

Mr James Martin, of Liverpool, was convinced of sin under 
a sermon preached by the Rev. V. Ward, and soon afterwards 
he found peace with God. He was appointed a leader in 181 1, 
and held that office for forty-five years. In 1831, he was a 
passenger in the Rothsay Castle when she was wrecked be- 
tween Liverpool and Beaumaris, when ninety-three persons 
perished, and only twenty-one were saved. When he was float- 
ing on a plank from off which several had been washed, as the 
waves were breaking over him, he exclaimed, 

" The God that rules on high, 
That all the earth surveys, 
That rides upon the stormy sky, 
And calms the roaring seas," &c. 



12 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 12. 



After he was rescued, his life was afresh dedicated to God. 
He became a leader of three classes, and worked with untiring 
energy in the cause of God. In his last hours of consciousness 
he said, " I know nothing about doubts and fears." Thus 
calmly resting on the everlasting arms, he entered into life. 

Thomas Hazlehurst, of Runcorn, was born in 1779. At the 
early age of seven years he was convinced of sin by means of a 
conversation with the schoolmistress who taught him the first 
elements of learning. At the age of twenty-seven he obtained 
peace with God through faith in Jesus Christ. Both he and 
his wife joined the Methodist Society, and remained faith- 
ful witnesses for Christ to the end of life, and they entered 
Paradise separated only by a few weeks. Mr Hazlehurst had 
several favourite hymns, which he often repeated with strong 
feeling. One of these was the 12th, and especially the third 
verse, commencing, 

" There we shall see His face, 
And never, never sin," &c. 

He died quite suddenly, but fully prepared for the change, 
February 17, 1842. 

Mrs Topham was early converted to God by a sermon preached 
from the words, " I know that my Redeemer liveth," &c. In 1832, 
she joined the Methodist Society, and remained a consistent 
member to the end of her days. She set a particular value on 
the class-meeting. A long and painful affliction preceded her 
death, during which her mind was sweetly stayed upon God, 
and she was truly happy. Shortly before the last struggle, 
fierce temptation assailed her, but she came off more than con- 
queror, repeating ;< All is well now," and then added — 

" There we shall see His face, 
And never, never sin," &c. 

Shortly after, without a struggle, she fell asleep in Jesus. 

The quiet village of Wicken, Soham, near Mildenhall, was 
formerly the residence of Henry, son of Oliver Cromwell, and 
the birthplace of the well-known Andrew Fuller. Methodism 
has flourished there for half a century — one of its oldest members 
being John Docking. He was a Churchman in early life, but 
under the preaching of the Methodists he was convinced of sin, 
and with them he cast in his lot. After obtaining a clear sense 
of pardon, he threw all his energies into the service of God, and 



HY. 12.] 



and its Associations. 



13 



through his efforts a new chapel was erected in the village. 
During a long life, he was always " abounding in the work of 
the Lord." For eighty years he scarcely knew a day's illness. 
He was a man of one book, and searched the Scriptures often 
many times in a day. Shortly before his death, he said to a 
friend, " We shall soon meet in heaven." 

" There we shall see His face, 
And never, never sin," &c. 

He died exhorting all around his bed to trust in Christ. 

Methodism in Canterbury owes much of its stability and suc- 
cess to the labours of the venerable Vincent Perronet and his 
son Charles. The latter was for some years an inmate under 
the roof of Mrs Bissaker, and in the Arminian Magazine for 
1785 is the copy of a remarkable " Memorial to Miss Nancy 
Bissaker, in her seventh year." This was intended by the 
estimable writer to be a guide to his young friend in after-life. 
Mrs Bissaker was one of Mr Wesley's hearers in that ancient 
city, at the very beginning of Methodism. Her daughter Ann 
had her mind greatly moulded by Mr C. Perronet, of whom she 
says, "he taught me the fear of God, abhorrence of lying, a love 
for the poor, contempt for finery, a strong attachment to the 
Bible, and a high veneration for my mother." She found a 
sense of pardon whilst Mr Bramwell was meeting her mother's 
class in 1786, and joined the Methodist Society in January 1778. 
In 1788, she was married to Mr Parnell, and entered upon the 
busy duties of life, discharging them for fourscore years with 
godly sincerity and fidelity. She suffered much in her last 
days, and during an interview with the Rev. Samuel Hope the 
conversation turned on the happiness of heaven, when Mr Hope 
observed, 

" The thoughts of such amazing bliss 
Should constant joys create." 

"Yes," said the sufferer, "constant joys! constant joys!!" 
These words were her last testimony ; unconsciousness imme- 
diately followed, and shortly afterwards she peacefully passed 
away to the skies. 

Elizabeth Jackson was awakened to a sense of her sinful con- 
dition at the age of fifteen, and soon afterwards found pardon 
through faith in Jesus. She served God faithfully during a long 
life. She was a member of the Methodist Society at Thirsk for 



14 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. i 5 . 



sixty-two years, and a witness to the doctrine of Christian per- 
fection fifty-three years. Attending the means of grace to the 
end of her days, she started for her class one day, but a dis- 
tressing asthma compelled her to halt at a friend's house on 
the way, where, in the state of acute suffering, she patiently 
said, " ' Jesus is mine, and I am His.' 

' The men of grace have found 
Glory begun below,' &c. 

I never could have thought that I could have been made so 
happy as I am now. Oh, what happiness ! Oh, what glory ! 
It is too sweet for dying." After a short period she added, " All 
is right ; all is well," and peacefully expired. 

George Bottomley was brought to God when about eighteen 
years of age. His consistency of character was maintained 
throughout life, and as a class-leader he was greatly beloved. 
He dwelt much on the promises of God ; and his last words, 
half an hour before he died, were — 

" We 're marching through Immanuel's ground, 
To fairer worlds on high. " 

HYMN 13. — "Happy soul, that, free from harms." — Waiting 
for full Redemption. — Tune, Arne, 1781. 

The original forms No. 106 in Charles Wesley's "Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. ii. Eight lines in the original are left 
out ; the first line is altered from " Happy soul, that, safe from 
harms," to " Happy soul, that, free from harms," and in the 
second line, fourth verse, " Perfect in " is altered to " Perfect 
through." 

Hymn 14. — " Happy the man that finds the grace." — Proverbs 
iii. 13, &c. — Tune, Stanton, 1761. 

This was written by Charles Wesley as one of his Redemption 
Hymns, 1747. The original is three verses longer. In the first 
line " that " is substituted for " who." 

HYMN 15. — " Happy the souls to Jesus join'd." — The Sacrament 
a pledge of Heaven. — Tune, Spitalfields, 1761. 

The original forms No. 96 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns on 
the Lord's Supper," 1745. The third and fourth lines read thus 
as first written : — 



Hy. 17.] 



and its Associations* 



" Walking in all thy ways, we find 
Our heaven on earth begun." 

Thomas Ross was brought up a Roman Catholic ; but on his 
coming of age, he read the Scriptures for himself, saw the errors 
of his past life, began to attend the ministry of the Methodists 
in 1797, and was admitted a member of Society by the Rev. 
Samuel Bradburn. He was for some years a steward, trustee, 
and class-leader, and faithfully served in each office. His last 
illness was short, but his mind enjoyed much peace. The night 
before his departure he repeated his favourite hymn, which spoke 
the language of his heart : — 

" Happy the souls to Jesus joined, 
And saved by grace alone, &c. 

In this delightful frame, his spirit returned to God who gave it. 

Hymn 16. — "Happy the souls that first believed." 
„ 17. — "Jesus, from whom all blessings flow." — 
Primitive Christianity. — Tune, Athlone, 1781. 

This appears as one hymn in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems/' 1749, vol. ii., and forms No. 246. The original 
has thirty stanzas ; and John Wesley has printed twenty -two 
verses in making the two hymns. In the last line of verse six, 
in the second part, " may 99 is altered from " might," but this 
change was made after Mr Wesley's death. 

The poetry of this composition is smooth and harmonious. 
It describes the Church as composed of living stones, and the 
conversion of sinners as the result of the preaching of the gospel. 
The allusion in the ninth verse, " Draw by the music of thy 
name," seems to have been suggested by the fable of Orpheus, 
who by the charms of his lyre subdued the wildness of savage 
beasts, and held mountains, rivers, and trees in subjection to 
the power of his music — " And charm into a beauteous frame." 
This hymn appeared first in 1744, and was printed by John 
Wesley at the end of his " Appeal to Men of Reason and 
Religion," and separately as one of Mr Wesley's halfpenny 
tracts. Mr Benson records the fact that this hymn was long a 
favourite with Mr Fletcher, Vicar of Madeley, who after dinner 
spent some time in devotional services, and generally selected 
verses from " Primitive Christianity," particularly this : — 



i6 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 19. 



11 Oh that my Lord would count me meet 
To wash His dear disciples' feet!" 
He has been known to read this hymn till tears of joy and 
gratitude streamed down his face, that he had been made a 
partaker of that Christianity. 

Joseph Mood, Wesleyan minister, was born near Bedal, in 
1818. In early youth, he was dedicated by a pious mother to 
the service of God ; and one Sunday morning before breakfast, 
at the prayer-meeting, he found peace through believing. Con- 
verted himself, he soon began to preach the gospel by which 
he had been saved, and after five years' labours as a local 
preacher, in 1843 he took a circuit. His ministry was attrac- 
tive, acceptable, and useful, and he won many of the young to 
Christ. His last illness was brief, but he was prepared for its 
issues. The morning on which he died, he repeated the seven- 
teenth hymn throughout. Shortly after he said, " Sing ! get your 
hymn-book and sing ;" and whilst his friends were trying to meet 
his wishes, his countenance was lighted with a heavenly smile, 
which remained for some minutes. He then said, " I shall live 
for ever," and almost instantly his spirit escaped to immortality. 

Hymn 18. — " Maker, Saviour of mankind." — For Children, — 
Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

This is an exact reprint of No. 1 5 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns 
for Children," the first edition of which appeared in 1763, the 
second in 1768, and the third in 1778. 

The estimation in which these compositions were held is 
indicated in a letter written by Mr Thomas Pearse, of Camel- 
ford, Cornwall. To his daughter, at school, he writes : — " Buy 
of Mr Evans Mr Wesley's ( Hymns for Children,' and get them 
by heart ; I will pay for the book and give you a penny for each 
hymn [you learn], which, I believe, will amount to nearly four 
shillings. Those hymns afforded much comfort to your sister 
Peggy, who is now in heaven." This volume contains just 
one hundred hymns ; and a considerable number of them are 
favourites with the young. In verse three, line six, Mr Bunting 
alters " when " to " till." 

Hymn 19. — " Rejoice evermore with angels above " — For those 
that have foimd Redemption. — TUNE, Tallis, 1761. 
This forms No. 3 in Charles Wesley's "Redemption Hymns," 
1747- 



HY. 22.] 



and its Associations. 



17 



Hymn 20. — "Weary souls, that wander wide." — The Invitation. 
—Tune, Dedication, 1781. 
The original is No. 4 of Charles Wesley's " Redemption 
Hymns." The first line in the original reads thus, "Weary 
souls, who wonder wide," and the fourth line of the third verse 
reads, " Live on earth," instead of " Find on earth the life of 
heaven." There is an earnest and loving spirit of exhortation 
to sinners pervading the whole, and some striking contrasts are 
exhibited throughout. 

Hymn 21, — " Ye simple souls that stray." — For those that have 
found Redemption. — Tune, Olney, 1 761. 

This hymn forms No. 16 of the " Redemption Hymns," but 
whether written by John or Charles Wesley seems hardly to be 
decided. Dr Whitehead claims the hymn for Charles, and Mr 
Henry Moore says it is John Wesley's. The internal evidence, 
the purity, strength, and sobriety of the language suggest that 
it was written by John. It was published first in 1747. The 
original is eight lines longer, and there are alterations made 
in every verse. In the fifth verse the ministration of angels is 
admirably stated. The fact that so many alterations are made 
throughout would indicate Charles Wesley to be the author, 
and John the corrector. 

Hymn 22. — " Behold the Saviour of mankind." — On the 
Crucifixion. — Tune, Fetter Lane, 1761. 

The author of this hymn was the Rev. Samuel Wesley, rector 
of Epworth, who died in the year 1735. The hymn was first 
published by his sons in 1739, in their first collected volume of 
" Hymns and Sacred Poems." In the collection, as it appeared 
in 1780, it has the first place amongst the hymns under the title 
" Describing the goodness of God." And certainly never was 
goodness more strongly manifested than in the gift of Christ to 
save a lost world, and in His dying to redeem man. The internal 
structure of the hymn shows how fully the writer appeared to 
realise the infinite importance of the event he so touchingly and 
effectively describes. But there is a short and touching history 
of this hymn which should not pass without notice. It was 
probably written a short time before the Rectory at Epworth 
was burnt down in 1 709 ; for immediately after the fire the 

B 



i8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 22. 



original manuscript, blown by the wind out of the Rectory 
window, was found partly burnt in the Rectory garden. Thus 
when many more valuable things were consumed, a gentle 
breeze carried this lately finished manuscript off the study table 
into a place of safety. The hymn has music adapted to it, 
probably by Henry Purcell or Dr Blow. It is the only hymn by 
the rector of Epworth in the Methodist collection. Two verses 
are left out, one after the first, and one after the fourth, as they 
appear in the hymn-book. We shall be pardoned for inserting 
here the omitted verses : — 

" Though far unequal our low praise 
To Thy vast sufferings prove, 
O Lamb of God, thus all our days, 
Thus will we grieve and love. 

" Thy loss our ruins did repair, 
Death, by Thy death is slain ; 
Thou wilt at length exalt us where 
Thou dost in glory reign." 

The hymn would not be much improved by the addition of 
these verses. It was at this fire, and on this occasion, that 
John Wesley himself was saved, but only by being lifted out of 
his bedroom window, by one man standing on the shoulders of 
others, just before the burning roof of the parsonage fell in, when 
everything else was consumed, including the rector's library, 
furniture, and all his manuscripts, his sermons, and a work on 
Hebrew poetry, which was an English poetical rendering of the 
Psalms and other Hebrew hymns in the Bible. 

Of the author himself, the father of the Wesleys, it is scarcely 
possible to speak too highly. He was born at Winterburn- 
Whitchurch, in 1662 ; educated at Dorchester, and Newington 
Green, London, and Exeter College, Oxford, where he wrote 
and published " Maggots" to obtain the means of living. He 
was ordained in 1688, made a priest in St Andrew's Church, 
Holborn, in 1689, and became a curate on £2% a year. During 
the same year he was married to Susanna Annesley, and nine- 
teen children were afterwards added to their family circle. Such 
privations, sufferings, and hardships seldom fall to the lot of any 
household, as became the lot and inheritance of the Wesley 
family ; and yet no other family since the days of the Apostles 
did more for the spread of pure religion, and for the glory of 



HY. 22.] 



and its Associations, 



19 



God. The venerable rector was author of the " Life of Christ," 
an heroic poem ; the " History of the Old and New Testament " 
in verse, in 3 vols. ; the " History of Job," in Latin, and other 
books ; and died, after being rector of Epworth forty years, April 

25, i735> a g ed 72. 

This hymn has been instrumental in the hands of God of 
pointing sinners to their only Saviour. The Rev. Owen Davis, 
born at Wrexham, North Wales, in 1752, was influenced by the 
example of godly Methodists, through whom he was led to their 
preaching, and once there one asked him if he had " a desire to 
flee from the wrath to come ?" Another one invited him to a 
class-meeting, and through meeting with the people of God 
light soon rose on his dark mind. After meeting in class nine 
months, at a love-feast, while one was giving out the hymn 
commencing — 

" Behold the Saviour of mankind 
Nail'd to the shameful tree ! " 

he was enabled to see that Christ bore his sins in His own body, 
and that His blood was a sufficient atonement for the sins of the 
whole world. The change wrought in his life was manifest to 
all. He became one of the Community preachers in London, 
and by Benjamin Rhodes, for whom he preached at five o'clock 
one morning in City Road Chapel, he was recommended to Mr 
Wesley, and afterwards accepted as a preacher. A long life of 
useful labour as an earnest minister of the gospel was the best 
evidence of his change of heart ; and he died as he had lived, 
honouring the gospel and the grace of God. 

We commemorate the dying of our blessed Lord on the day 
we call Good Friday. On that day, in 1840, a truly good man, 
Mr H. Wight, a class-leader, and a man of upright charac- 
ter, attended divine worship in the Wesleyan Chapel at Ply- 
mouth in the early part of the day, in his usual health. In the 
afternoon he walked with his wife to the prayer-meeting, and 
went up to the desk. Opening the hymn-book, he announced 
the 22d hymn, and read, — 

" Behold the Saviour of mankind 
Nail'd to the shameful tree ! " 
Scarcely had he uttered the last word when he fell ; pulsation 
and breathing appeared to cease in a moment ; his spirit had 
passed, without a moment's notice of illness, to the beatific 



20 



The Methodist Hymn-Boole 



[HY. 23. 



vision amongst the redeemed, and he saw Jesus for himself with- 
out a cloud between. Few die so suddenly — none more safely ; 
his was a translation ; he knew not death or dying, but by one 
step he passed direct from blissful service on earth to eternal 
rest in heaven. 

Another example is worthy of record of the words of this 
hymn having been made use of by the Holy Spirit to lead a 
penitent into the enjoyment of the liberty which pardon brings. 
The mother of the Rev. Dr Jobson has left the impress of her 
transparent piety on the heart of her son, and in return that 
son has embalmed the memory of his sainted mother in a 
memoir which exhibits much of heavenly wisdom. In early 
life, that mother had partaken of the sacred emblems of our 
Lord's passion, and with a bruised spirit she returned home to 
seek a personal interest in the atonement. On repeating the 
hymn commencing — 

" Behold the Saviour of mankind," &c, 

she was enabled to appropriate by faith, to her own case, the 
merits of the death of Christ ; and then, while uttering the 
verse — 

u But soon He'll break death's envious chain," &c., 

her soul burst into the clear sunlight and liberty of the children 
of God. The bright example of a life of more than fifty years 
was the best evidence of the certainty of the change which 
divine grace had wrought. 

Hymn 23. — " Extended on a cursed tree." — " They shall look 
on Me whom they have pierced" (Zech. xii. 12). — Tune, 
Pudsey, 1761. 

John Wesley was very successful in his translations of Ger- 
man hymns. The original of this one was written by Paul 
Gerhardt, in 1659 ; it forms No. 104 in the Hernhutt Collection, 
and in its English dress, prepared by John Wesley, first 
appeared in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, on page 34. 
It is reprinted in the first volume of Charles Wesley's " Poetical 
Works," 1868. There are twenty-four of John Wesley's trans- 
lations in the hymn-book, of which this is the first. Paul 
Gerhardt was born at Graefenhaenichen, in Saxony, in 1606. 
He suffered much during the thirty years' war. He first became 
a village pastor, when he married ; and in 1657 was called to 



Hy. 25.] 



and its Associations. 



21 



St Nicholas Church in Berlin, and soon became known and 
esteemed through his beautiful hymns. He published the first 
collection of his hymns in 1666, and in the same year he was 
deposed from his spiritual office because he would not belong 
to either the Lutheran or the Reformed party in the Church. 
He was deposed, then reinstated, then altogether removed from 
office in the Church, and had to depend on the alms of his 
friends to save him from want. During the period of his non- 
employment in the Church he wrote some of his best hymns. 
He died, weary and aged, June 7, 1676, giving a beautiful dying 
charge to his only son, urging him to remain steadfast in the 
faith. His portrait, in the church at Liibben, bears the inscrip- 
tion, " A divine sifted in Satan's sieve." He left one hundred 
and twenty-three hymns, of which more than thirty are patterns 
of hymns for all time. Next to Luther, Paul Gerhardt was the 
greatest and most popular hymn-writer in Germany, and em- 
phatically the people's poet. No other German writer has had 
so many of his hymns translated into English. 

Hymn 24.—" Ye that pass by, behold the Man ;" 
„ 25. — " O Thou dear suffering Son of God." — 
A Passion Hymn.- -Tune, Dresden, 1761. 

In Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, and 
in the early editions of the Hymn-book, these two hymns are 
found as one, but extended to eighteen verses, of which three 
are omitted. The fourth line of the third verse of the second 
part reads thus, " And bow with Jesus crucified," which is altered 
to " And die," &c. 

Objection has been taken to verse 2 of the second part, com- 
mencing " Give me to feel Thy agonies." " In the great work 
of atoning for sin Jesus Christ stood alone ; none to help, none 
to bear any part of His burden, nor to drink one drop of His 
sad cup. The work of atonement was performed solely and 
exclusively by the Lord Jesus." Some Christians may be said 
to suffer with Christ, but He had to tread the wine-press alone, 
and with Him there was none to help. The fourth verse Mr 
Bunting suggests the omission of, which many would think to 
be an improvement. 

In the fifth verse of the second part occurs this line, " O rent 
with thy expiring groan," which is altered in the hymn to 
" rend." The use of that word is made the subject of a long 



22 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 26. 



and interesting article, by the Rev. Thomas Jackson, in the 
Wesleyan Magazine, 1854, page 778, et seq. The whole article 
is a defence of the language used by the Wesleys against some 
of the minor critics who have presumed to turn " correctors." 

Hymn 26.—" I thirst, Thou wounded Lamb of God." — 
A Prayer to Christ. — Tune, Complaint, 1761. 

The original of this hymn was written in German by Count 
Zinzendorf and John and Anna Nitzchman. It was translated 
by John Wesley, and published in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1740. 

Like many of the German hymns, this combines scriptural 
truth, poetical fervour, and deep religious experience. It has 
been long a favourite with new converts, and will always find 
admirers amongst those who are beginning to know something 
of the boundless love of Christ, and who are desiring conformity 
to His mind and will. 

John Tasker, late of Skipton, sought the Lord in early life. 
He was convinced of sin under the preaching of Dr Bunting and 
Dr Newton, and much encouraged in his religious life by the 
Rev. John Crosse, vicar of Bradford. When he gave his heart 
to God, he gave all his powers to be used in His service, 
and during a long life he faithfully served the Lord. Wlien 
failing health indicated the approach of death, he said with 
resignation — 

" I thirst, Thou wounded Lamb of God, 

To wash me in Thy cleansing blood ; 

To dwell within Thy wounds : then pain 

Is sweet, and life or death is gain." 

He died as he had lived, at peace with God. 

During many years of suffering, Mary Pritchard testified by 
patient endurance, and loving obedience to the will of God, 
that she had passed from death unto life. The Methodist Society 
at Tintern Abbey was adorned by her godly example, and when 
death was before her, she called her husband to join her in sing- 
ing her favourite hymn, commencing — 

" I thirst, Thou wounded Lamb of God," &c. 

At its close she exclaimed, " I nothing have ; I nothing am 
Jesus ! Jesus ! 77 and with these words she fell on sleep. 

A venerable man was William Walton, of Wakefield. After a 



Hy. 26] 



and its Associations. 



23 



life of more than fourscore years, during which he enjoyed con- 
stant communion with God, at its close, with tranquillity, he 
faintly articulated, " Jesus is all the world to me ! " and his last 
utterance before entering paradise was — 

" Take my poor heart, and let it be 
For ever closed to all but Thee ! " 

He calmly entered heaven. 

James Isitt, of Bedford, was called at an early age to exchange 
mortality for life. But he left behind him a godly example and 
influence which is seen in the career of his son Francis, who 
has just dedicated his life to the service of God in the Wesleyan 
ministry. Important are the words of one who is just detaching 
himself from earth. Shortly before his departure to heaven, Mr 
Isitt repeated the verse commencing — 

" I thirst, Thou wounded Lamb of God," &c. 

Then adding the next verse, "Take my poor heart," &c., he 
exclaimed with deep pathos, " Take it now, Lord ; I need not 
wait till I am better." His latest expressions indicated the 
serenity of undisturbed peace. 

In the furnace of affliction, William Goodacre, of Long Sutton, 
Nottingham, found the consolations of the gospel more than 
equal to his sufferings. Rendered by disease incapable of bear- 
ing any excitement, he would yet often say — 

" How can it be, Thou heavenly King, 
That Thou shouldst me to glory bring ? " 

Nature at length yielded in the struggle, and triumph crowned 
the end. 

There is a benignity and tenderness in the character of the 
Rev. William Entwisle, which his sainted father has placed on 
record. In the very prime of a most useful ministerial life, the 
Master saw fit to call him home ; and the blessed influence 
which attended his interviews with the preachers, indicates more 
of heavenly than of earthly manifestations. After partaking of 
the memorials of the Lord's death, he said — 

" How can it be, Thou heavenly King, 
That Thou shouldst me to glory bring ? 

I am a poor sinner ; the chief of sinners ; but Jesus died for me. 
Free grace for ever, free grace ! " Rejoicing with such hope 
he entered heaven. 



24 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 29. 



Hymn 27. — " Saviour, the world's and mine." — A Hymn to 
Christ— Tune, West Street, 1761. 
This is one of the earliest of Charles Wesley's compositions, 
and is found first in his "Hymns and Sacred Poems" 1739. 
This is an exact reprint, and was probably written a short time 
before his conversion. 

Hymn 28. — " O love Divine ! what hast thou done ! " — Desiring 
to Love. — Tune, 112th Psalm, 1761. 

This hymn first appeared in Charles Wesley's a Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1742. It is a sweet and touching composition. 
Rev. Dr Thomas Summers, of America, supposes that the refrain 
of this hymn, " My Lord, my love, is crucified," is taken from 
Ignatius, martyr in the Primitive Church. The same line is 
found in J. Mason's " Songs of Praise," which appeared in 1683. 
It is also used by other sacred poets. 

Hymn 29. — " Come, ye weary sinners, come." — For those that 
seek Redemption. — Tune, Foundry, 1761. 

This forms No. 10 in Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns," 
1747. The latter half of the second and the first half of the 
third verse in the original are omitted. The second line is 
altered from " All who groan to bear your load," to " All who 
groan beneath," &c. ; and the fourteenth line is altered from 
" Cast on Thee our sin and care," to " Cast on Thee our every 
care." 

Testimony to the value of class-meetings in Methodism is not 
wanting. Joshua Thorley, of Macclesfield, was taken to the 
house of prayer when a child, by a beloved sister. Under the 
ministry of Methodism, he became convinced of sin. He 
accepted an invitation to a class-meeting, in which he earnestly 
sought salvation by faith in Christ. While he was at that 
means of grace one day, and while the members were singing 
the verse — ■ 

" Come, ye weary sinners, come, 

All who groan beneath your load, 
Jesus calls His wanderers home : 
Hasten to your pardoning God," 

he was enabled to believe on Jesus as his Saviour. Light and 
love sprang up in his heart, he rested on the promises, and 
returned home a happy man. From this time to the end of his 



Hy. 30.] 



and its Associations, 



25 



earthly pilgrimage, he went on his way rejoicing in God as his 
reconciled Father ; and he gave to the Church of his choice 
forty years of consistent piety and devoted service. 

The same hymn which had been used as the means of leading 
a sinner to Christ was also found equally useful and consoling 
to a dear departing one, at the end of her earthly journey. 
Matilda, daughter of the Rev. William Dalby, was in early life 
serious and thoughtful, and in riper years the comfort and joy 
of her parents. Seven of her sisters preceded her to heaven, her 
watchful care of whom, and especially over her suffering mother, 
impaired her own health. After Mrs Dalby's death, the health 
of her only surviving daughter rapidly declined ; but she knew 
in whom she had believed. During her last affliction, she de- 
lighted in hearing the Word of God read to her by her father. 
The following verse of the 29th hymn she often repeated — 
" Fain I would on Thee rely, 

Cast on Thee my every care, 
To Thine arms of mercy fly, 

Find my lasting quiet there," 

saying to her father, " That is just my place." She also de- 
lighted in the other verses. Shortly before her departure she 
sung with evident rapture, " There is a land of pure delight," 
&c., and then, after a brief rest, quietly fell asleep in Jesus. 

Hymn 30. — " Where shall my wondering soul begin ? " — Christ 
the friend of sinners. — Tune, Frankfort, 1761. 

The original appears in the second part of Charles Wesley's 
" Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739. 

Very few are aware of the interest which belongs to this hymn. 
It was written in May 1738, by Charles Wesley, with another of 
like character, No. 201 in the Hymn-book, which commences, 
" And can it be that I should gain," &c. What the author of 
this hymn has written concerning it is so full of interest, we can- 
not refrain from quoting it. After the spiritual guidance which 
the brothers Wesley had received from Peter Bohler, they were 
separated, and Charles Wesley went to reside with a poor 
brazier named Bray, in Little Britain, " who knew nothing but 
Christ," who had to supply Border's place in explaining the way 
of salvation by faith. On May 21, 1738, Charles Wesley was 
enabled to say, " I believe, I believe ! " What follows is from 
his " Journal," under date of May 23. " At nine I began a 



26 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hv. 33- 



hymn on my conversion, but was persuaded to break off for fear 
of pride. Mr Bray coming, encouraged me to proceed in spite 
of Satan. I prayed Christ to stand by me, and finished the 
hymn. Upon my afterwards showing it to Mr Bray, the devil 
threw in a fiery dart, suggesting that it was wrong, and I had 
displeased God. My heart sank within me ; when, casting my 
eyes upon a Prayer-book, I met with an answer for him : 6 Why 
boastest thou thyself, thou tyrant, that thou must do mischief? 7 
Upon this I clearly discerned that it was a device of the enemy 
to keep back glory from God. And it is not unusual with him 
to preach humility, when speaking will endanger his kingdom, 
or do honour to Christ. Least of all would he have us tell what 
things God has done for our souls ; so tenderly does he guard 
us from pride. But God has showed me He can defend me 
from it while speaking for Him." " There is," says the Rev. 
John Kirk, " a remarkable coincidence between the spirit and 
language of the ' Journal ' and that of the hymn. As soon as 
he begins to express his joy he is tempted to stay his pen. He 
resolves to perform his vows unto the Lord, of not hiding His 
righteousness within his heart. This harmonises exactly with 
the third and fourth verses, probably composed after the temp- 
tation to desist. He asks, ' And shall I slight my Father's 
love ? ' &c." Two days afterwards, John Wesley also was able 
to believe to the salvation of his soul. Happy in the pardoning 
love of God, John was accompanied by a number of his friends, 
shortly before ten at night, to Mr Bray's house in Little Britain, 
where Charles was confined by illness. The two brothers and 
their companions were overjoyed, and Charles records, " We 
sang the hymn with great joy, and parted with prayer." 

Hymn 31. — 66 See, sinners, in the gospel glass ;* 
„ 32. — " Sinners, believe the gospel word ; " 
„ 33. — " Would Jesus have the sinner die ?" — 
Jesus Christy the Saviour of all men, — Tunes, Frankfort, 
Carey's, and Mourners, 1761. 

The original forms hymn No. 10 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns 
on God's Everlasting Love," 174.1, and it extends to twenty-eight 
stanzas, thirteen only of which are given in these three hymns. 
In two places " in " is changed for "through," as, for instance, 
" Pardon ye all in Him," is changed to "through Him," and as 
usual "dear" loving is altered to "thou" loving, in Hymn 33. 



Hy. 34.] 



and its Associations. 



27 



The widow of Thomas Smith, of Thurvaston, Derbyshire, after 
a long life of faithful service, was deprived of her husband, and 
herself laid prostrate, within a short period. The afternoon 
before her death she said to her children, " I have no abiding 
city here ; why should I wish to stay ? My home is in heaven." 
During the night she repeated the hymn commencing — 
" Would Jesus have the sinner die ? " &c., 

and afterwards added, " What should I do now if I had religion 
to seek ?" She exhorted those around her bed to give their hearts 
to the Lord : then with much solemnity and sweetness she ex- 
claimed, " My Lord, and my God/' and a few minutes later her 
redeemed spirit passed to the beatific vision. 

During forty-four years James Stokoe served God and Meth- 
odism in his native county of Durham. He greatly loved the 
Scriptures and old Methodist preachers. As he drew near his 
end he enjoyed more than ever the preciousness of the Saviour, 
often repeating the verse in the 33d hymn, commencing — 

" Oh, let me kiss Thy bleeding feet, 

And bathe and wash them with my tears, 99 &c, 

and also another verse commencing, 

" O love, thou bottomless abyss," &c. 

He lived uprightly, and died happily. 

Hymn 34. — " Let earth and heaven agree."— On God's 
everlasting love. — Tune, Trumpet, ly Si. 

This hymn forms No. 11 in Charles Wesley's "Hymns on 
God's Everlasting Love," 1741. Three verses are omitted, and 
in the sixth, " How swiftly" is changed from " How freely" in 
the original. Mr Wesley printed this hymn in the Armi7iian 
Magazine, vol. i., page 191. 

Mrs Alice Carvosso, a Cornish lady of cultivated mind, good 
taste, and consistent piety, suffered in her last protracted illness 
the most intense agony of body ; but in the midst of her afflic- 
tion she found great comfort in reading the Word of God, and 
in singing His praises as embodied in Wesley's hymns. To- 
wards the close of her life she dwelt particularly on this admir- 
able hymn, 

" Let earth and heaven agree," &c. 
This she thought was the most excellent in all Mr Wesley's 



28 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 34- 



collection. Though her physical agony was intense, her mind 
was kept in peace, and just before her departure, her dying testi- 
mony was, " Precious Jesus ! " 

A soul in deep distress will seek for relief, and next to the 
Bible no book has more aided the seeking penitent than Wes- 
ley's Hymns. The village schoolmaster of Walkeringham, 
Notts, William Morris, became concerned for the salvation of 
his soul. The verse of this hymn, 

" Stung by the scorpion sin," &c. 
so impressed his mind, that he gave God no rest till he found 
pardon, and in his after life, as a class-leader and local-preacher, 
he gave most gratifying evidence how entire was the change 
divine grace had wrought within him. Resting alone on the 
atonement, he fell asleep in Jesus. 

The triumphs of divine grace are so often repeated, the 
recording angel alone can tell how great is the sum of blessing 
vouchsafed by God to man. Shortly before Mr Wesley's death, 
William Thompson, then a sailor, was induced to attend the 
Methodist preaching, and, becoming convinced of sin, in great 
distress of mind, whilst meditating on the verse, 
" Stung by the scorpion sin," &c, 

he realised that inward comfort which constrained him to cry 
out, " O Lord, I will praise Thee ; for Thine anger is turned 
away/' &c. From that period to the end of fourscore years he 
walked in the light of God's countenance, and died in holy com- 
posure. 

Amongst many deeply afflicted followers of Jesus, Mrs Mary 
Jeffs, of Gloucester, was one who found abiding comfort and 
consolation through reading Wesley's Hymns. In her last 
illness she testified abundantly to the grace of God within her, 
and when very near her end she raised her voice, and joyfully 
exclaimed, 

" Oh for a trumpet-voice, On all the world to call I 
To bid their hearts rejoice In Him who died for all ! " &c. 

Shortly after, she said, "Jesus is increasingly precious;" and 
after a change in her position in bed, she added, " Oh, how easy ! 
Praise the Lord," and, quietly reclining on her pillow, she peace- 
fully fell asleep in Jesus. 

One much younger in years experienced even greater ecstacy in 
death, and recorded her joyful experience in strains like a con- 



Hy. 37.] 



and its Associations. 



29 



queror's song. Miss Topham realised pardoning grace in early 
life, at the sacrament of the Lord's Supper. She was early called 
to exchange worlds ; and shortly before her death she exclaimed, 
" Oh, what can this be ? I never felt so happy before. Oh, tell 
the servants and all to come and see how happy I am. 

* Oh for a trumpet- voice, On all the world to call ! ' " 
And again — 

' ' ' The arms of love that compass me 
Would all mankind embrace. ' " 
In this happy frame of mind she entered into rest. 

Hymn 35. — "Jesus, Thou all-redeeming Lord ; " 
„ 36. — " Lovers of pleasure more than God." — 
Before preaching to the Colliers in Leicestershire. — Tune, 
Birstal, 1761. 

The original will be found in vol. i., p. 3 16, of Charles Wesley's 
"Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, as one hymn of eighteen 
verses, six of which are omitted. In the fifth verse, " The hard- 
ness " is changed from " The stony," " swearers " is substituted 
for " railers,' ; with a few other verbal alterations. 

Mrs Paulina Wyvill was remarkable for high Christian attain- 
ment, for unassuming benevolence, and for firmness of character. 
From hearing a funeral sermon, at the age of twenty-one, she 
became convinced of sin, began to meet in class, and soon found 
pardon. Naturally fragile in body, she sought happiness in the 
company of the righteous, and when called to leave this world 
she found her chief delight in praising God* Shortly before her 
death, she repeated the three verses commencing with 

" Lovers of pleasure more than God." 
Amongst her last counsels to her friends she said, " Pay strict 
attention to the means of grace ; never forsake your class-meet- 
ing — those precious meetings ! what heavenly seasons have I 
there enjoyed ! " A little later she whispered, " I want to be 
filled with the presence of Jesus," and her request was granted ; 
death was swallowed up in victory. 

Hymn 37. — "Jesus, the Name high over all." — After preaching 
in a church. — Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

As originally written by Charles Wesley, this hymn extends 
to twenty-two verses, only six of which are chosen. The first 
line of the original 'is "Jesus, accept the grateful song;" it is 



30 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 37- 



found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749. The ninth verse 
of the original forms the first of Hymn 37. 

This hymn has long been a great favourite with the Methodist 
people generally, and several well-authenticated instances are 
known of its having been used by godly persons to exorcise the 
devil. The facts which suggested the composition are recorded 
by Charles Wesley in his Journal under date of August 6, 1744. 
Having been preaching in the small church at Laneast, in Corn- 
wall, and condemning the drunken revels of the people, whilst 
urging them to " repent and be converted/' one in the congre- 
gation contradicted and blasphemed. Charles Wesley asked, 
" Who is he that pleads for the devil ? " The reviler stood boldly 
forward, the preacher fearlessly exposed his iniquity, and showed 
the whole congregation their state by nature. Mr Wesley's 
withering exposure drove the man in disgrace out of the church. 
These circumstances are believed to have suggested the writing 
of the hymn. 

In the Life of the Rev. Henry Ransom (Wesleyan Magazine, 
September 1857), an incident is related as having occurred in 
his presence, of an evil spirit being cast out after the singing of 
part of this hymn and prayer, at Darlaston. 

Other spirits have been exorcised by the magic power of these 
verses, besides those indicated. Five of the six verses of this 
hymn have been quoted by happy saints departing to paradise. 

Mrs Elizabeth Baker, of Banbury, was brought up without any 
sense of the fear of God resting upon her. At the age of nineteen 
she was married, and, becoming a mother, soon lost two beloved 
babes. This event the parents took as a visitation from God 
for their sins, especially that of trading on the Sabbath-day. 
They bought a Prayer-book to aid them in seeking mercy, but 
a revival breaking out in 1820 at Banbury, the mother attended 
the Methodist preaching, and found pardon through believing 
in Jesus. She maintained her confidence in God through a 
long course of domestic anxieties and afflictions. Just before 
she died, her family never having known her to sing, were sur- 
prised to hear her pour forth in clear, musical strains — 

" Jesus, the Name high over all, 
In hell, or earth, or sky : 
Angels and men before it fall, 
And devils fear and fly." 



Hy. 37-] 



and its Associations. 



3* 



Her transparent, simple-hearted godliness was manifest in 
dying, — she literally slept in Jesus. 

Robert Elliott, of Hutton-Rudby, Stockton, lived for twenty- 
eight years without religion, but was brought to a knowledge of 
sins forgiven through the preaching of the Methodists. For 
more than thirty years he was a faithful leader, and daily went 
about doing good. A worldly-minded professor once said of 
him, " I cannot but love Robert Elliott, but I hate to meet 
him." He was unflinching in reproving sin. On his death-bed, 
when visited by the preacher, he said to the friendly inquirer, 
" I am in great pain, but happy in God." Speaking of his con- 
fidence in Christ, he exclaimed, as in an ecstasy, 

" Jesus, the Name to sinners dear, 
The name to sinners given ; 
It scatters all my guilty fear, 
It turns my hell to heaven." 

His last words were, " Happy, happy ! 8 and without a struggle 
or sigh he ceased to breathe. 

Miss Helen Hulse, niece of Mr Sykes, of Mansfield- Wood- 
house, was called to endure severe affliction, which, however, 
was greatly alleviated by the recital of the hymns she had learned 
in youth. Not more than ten minutes before her departure, she 
spoke of all her blessings as coming through Jesus only, and re- 
peated the lines — 

" Power into strengthless souls He speaks, 
And life into the dead." 

She asked her sister to read to the end of the hymn, earnestly 
joining in the last verse, commencing — 

" Happy, if with my latest breath ] 
I may but gasp His name," &c. 

Directly afterwards she sweetly fell asleep in Jesus. 

Robert Voakes, in early life, was deprived of many religious 
advantages; but Alleine's "Alarm," Nelson's "Journal," the 
" Pilgrim's Progress," and other similar works, convinced him 
that he was a sinner. He was for seven long years under the 
law. On removing into the Pocklington circuit, he joined a 
class, found mercy, and soon afterwards was made a leaden 
He laboured for God, through many severe trials, till he was 
eighty-five, when infirmity laid him aside. After a survey of 



32 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 3jr 



his protracted life, he recorded much to the praise of God, and 
finished by writing, " Now my mind is relieved from the cares 
of the world, 

1 'Tis all my business here below 
To cry, Behold the Lamb ! ' " 

In his ninety-fourth year he entered into rest, having been a 
Methodist seventy-two years, and a class-leader more than 
seventy years. 

On the lips of many of the Lord's people have the words of 
the last verse of this hymn faltered, just as they were entering 
paradise. Four of the preachers we may name as examples : — 

The Rev. Richard Robarts, after a brief but useful career in 
the Methodist ministry, closed his pilgrimage by repeating to a 
friend at his bedside the verse — 

" Happy, if with my latest breath," &c. 

His last words were, " Thank the Lord ! Now, Lord, come. 
Amen." 

The Rev. James Needham appreciated the preciousness of 
many of Wesley's hymns, and quoted several of them to friends 
who visited him on his death-bed. When strength was rapidly 
declining, and life fast ebbing out, one friend said to him, " You 
still preach Christ to us." With much exertion, and difficulty 
of breathing, he exclaimed, 

" Happy, if with my latest breath 
I may but gasp His name," &c. 

His last words were the following : " Glory, honour, might, ma- 
jesty, and dominion, be ascribed to God and the Lamb for 

ever ! " 

After a brief ministry of only seven years, the Rev. Thomas 
Charles Rushforth exchanged mortality for life. On the Satur- 
day before his death, he desired a few friends to meet in his 
house for prayer : and during that final service with the mem- 
bers of the Church militant he repeated with emphasis the 
verse commencing — 

' ' Happy, if with my latest breath 
I may but gasp His name," &c. 

His last utterances were, " I shall soon be at rest, — my dear 
Redeemer." 

Early conversion is a safe indication of a happy and useful 



Hy. 38.] 



and its Associations. 



33 



life. The Rev. Thomas Thompson began to preach before he 
came of age, and at twenty-two became a home missionary, 
faithfully and kindly fulfilling the duties of the Methodist min- 
istry for twenty-nine years. During his last illness his mind was 
kept in perfect peace, and amongst his last earthly utterances 
were, " I am waiting for my change without desire of life or 
fear of death. I am an unworthy servant ; but all my trust is 
in the merits of Jesus Christ : 

" Happy if with my latest breath 
I may but gasp His name," &c. 

He died trusting in the Lord. 

Hymn 38.* — "O God, of good the unfathom'd Sea! 5 — God's 
Love to Mankind. 

The original of this strikingly sublime hymn was written, in 
German, by John Angelus, or Angelus Silesius, or John Schefrler, 
a mystic, and member of the Roman Catholic Church, born in 
1624, and who died in 1677. His hymns were published in 
Breslau in 1657, under the title of" Holy Delight of the Soul, or 
Spiritual Hymns of a Soul enraptured by Love to Jesus." 
Hymns of such a character were sure to attract the attention of 
John Wesley, who wrote a free translation of this one, which 
appeared in "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739. This hymn 
was added to the collection after Mr Wesley's death, as was 
also Hymn 39, which is indicated by the asterisk (*). 

A mighty host will be found before the throne of God, gathered 
into the fold as the result of the ministry of the Rev. Robert 
Newton, and, amongst them, Benjamin Ward, of Oldham, who 
was so impressed by the manner of the preacher in giving out 
the verse commencing, " O God, of good the unfathom'd sea," 
&c., that he was enabled to give his heart to the Lord after the 
singing of that first verse. He joined the Methodist Society at 
the age of fifteen, and for forty years was actively employed as a 
class-leader, as leader of the congregational singing, and in the 
Sunday-school. 

The Almighty God sometimes manifests Himself to His 
people in a manner so unusual that, like the Apostle Paul, they 
testify that, whether in the body or out of it, they know not. 
Mrs Marian Shipman, of Mansfield, was favoured, a short time 
before her death, with an extraordinary manifestation of the 

C 



34 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 40. 



Divine presence, and she gave utterance to her feelings in the 
language of the first verse of this hymn : — 

" O God, of good the unfathom'd Sea ! 
Who would not give his heart to Thee ? 

Who would not love Thee with his might, 
O Jesu, lover of mankind ? 
Who would iiot his whole soul and mind, 
W T ith all his strength to Thee unite ?" 

Hymn 39 * — " Father, whose everlasting love." — On GocFs 
Everlasting Love. 

This appeared in the first of Charles Wesley's " Tracts of 
Hymns/' 1741, with the title just given. The original extends 
to twenty-seven verses. In the fourth verse, " a world ; ' is 
altered to "the world." 

The lay agency in Methodist preaching has, taking man for 
man, been more abundantly owned by the Holy Spirit in the 
saving of souls than the separated or priestly agency of the 
Established Church. John Johnson, of Gunnerside, Reeth, was 
brought to God under a sermon preached by Richard Buxton, a 
local preacher. Immediately he began to seek the souls of 
others, and became in turn a leader and local preacher himself, 
and was made a blessing to many. On the day of his death he 
had preached at Gayle, and, at tea with a friend at Hawes, 
spoke of being as happy as he could be. In the evening he 
opened the service at Hawes, and gave out the 42d hymn, the 
last two lines being — 

" Lift up the standard of Thy cross, 

And all shall own Thou died'st for all." 

He commenced to pray, and had uttered a sentence of adora- 
tion, when he fell in the pulpit ; his spirit went straight to the 
paradise of God. 

Hymn 40. — " Ye neighbours and friends, To Jesus draw near." — 
After preaching to the Newcastle Colliers, Dece?nber 4, 1746. 
— Tune, Triumph, 1761. 

Under date of November 30, in his journal, Charles Wesley 
uses the same phraseology as he embodies in this spirited hymn. 
During that visit to the North, he preached several times in the 
streets of Newcastle to listening crowds, who forgot the sharp- 



HY. 42.] and its Associations. 



35 



ness of the frost while listening to the earnest, soul-stirring words 
of life from the man of God. The original appears in " Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. i., p. 310, where it extends to 
twelve verses, five of which are omitted. John Wesley made 
a correct reprint of his brother's hymn, but some subsequent 
editor has sadly marred both the sense and the theology of the 
first line, which, in the original, reads thus — 

"Ye neighbours, and friends of Jesus, draw nigh," 
thus keeping the distinction between the world and the Church, 
sinners and saints, which is lost in the incorrect line now in the 
Hymn-book. " Praise " is also exchanged for " grace " at the 
end of the third verse. This hymn is correctly printed in John 
Wesley's first and subsequent editions issued during his life- 
time ; but it is printed incorrectly in the penny edition of Wes- 
ley's hymns recently issued by the Book Committee. 

Hymn 41. — " O God ! our help in ages past." — Man frail, ana 
God eternal. — Tune, Bexley, 1761. 
This much-admired composition is Dr Watts' paraphrase of 
one of David's Psalms. It was first published in 1719, and, after 
undergoing several corrections by John Wesley, was issued in 
Mr Wesley's first Hymn-book in 1738, in its altered form. In 
Watts', it commences " Our God, our help," &c. 

William Kay, of Manchester, feared God from his youth, and 
was in communion with the Methodists for fifty-eight years. 
His confidence in God was unshaken ; and at the close of a 
life of more than fourscore years, when a member of his family 
repeated the lines — 

" O God, our help in ages past, 
Our hope for years to come ; 

Our shelter from the stormy blast," 

Here the dying saint cheerfully added the last line— 

" And our eternal home." 
Almost immediately after, his spirit returned to God. 

Hymn 42. — " Thee we adore, eternal Name." — Frail Life, and 
succeeding Eternity. — Tune, Chimes, 1761. 
A hymn by Dr Watts, forming No. 55, Book II., in his col- 
lection. It was first published in 1709 ; and, with three of 
John Wesley's improvements, was inserted in his " Psalms and 
Hymns" (1738). 



36 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 43. 



In the company of the redeemed in heaven, none will shine 
with brighter lustre than the devoted missionary of the cross, 
who wears out health and life in the work of proclaiming a free 
salvation for every man. The Rev. George Bellamy fell a 
victim to fever in Demerara. During his severe sufferings, 
whilst a coloured servant was bathing his head with vinegar, 
he solemnly exclaimed — 

" Thee we adore, Eternal Name, 
And humbly own to Thee, 
How feeble is our mortal frame, 
What dying worms we be." 

The faith of the poor black servant was manifested in the reply, 
" Massa no 'fraid ; dis sickness for de glory of God. " Brother 
Ames, another missionary residing near, was also ill, and about 
this time died ; but the sad event was concealed from his friend 
Bellamy by those around him. The spirit of the departed one 
must have appeared to him ; for, soon after, Mr Bellamy ex- 
claimed, " Ames is gone ! I '11 go too ." After this he changed 
for death, and at six next morning his spirit went to join his 
fellow-missionary in the land of the blessed. 

Hymn 43. — "And am I born to die ?" — For Children. — Tune, 
Lampe's, 1746. 

This forms No. 59 of Charles Wesley's "Hymns for Children," 
1763. " A land of deepest shade," is altered from "A world," 
&o, and " Shall" is exchanged for "Will angel bands convey." 
Of the one hundred hymns contained in this volume, the vener- 
able Thomas Jackson remarks — " It would perhaps be difficult 
to mention any uninspired book that, in the same compass, con- 
tains so much evangelical sentiment. Charles Wesley's " Hymns 
for Children" are full of instruction, yet thoroughly devotional in 
their character. There is nothing puerile in them, either with 
respect to thought or expression. The language is simple, 
terse, pure, and strong. The topics which they embrace are 
the truths and facts of Christianity, especially in their bearing 
upon personal religion. In the hands of a Christian mother, 
these hymns would form a valuable help in the task of educa- 
tion. Most of the hymns, if committed to memory, would at 
once inform the memory and impress the heart. Some of the 
hymns are intended for the use of young children just beginning 
to speak and think, whilst others are adapted equally to the 



Hy. 44.] 



and its Associations. 



37 



capacity and experience of adults. The design of the whole is 
to teach, to form the manners, and to discipline the under- 
standing and conscience. The author leads the young mind to 
Christ as a sacrifice for sin, as the fountain of grace, as the 
great example of all excellence, and as the supreme Lord and 
Judge. 

Hymn 44. — "And am I only born to die?" — For Children. — 
Tune, Snowsfields, 1761. 

The original forms No. 64 in the same volume as the pre- 
ceding. One incident out of many may be briefly alluded to, 
to show the power and influence of this hymn. 

A young lady in America, of high position, and who had 
completed a thorough course of education, leaving school with 
certificates of the highest merit, had become the centre of a large 
and fashionable circle of friends. This gifted and accomplished 
young lady went one Sunday evening to hear a sermon preached 
by the venerable Bishop Asbury. The voice, manner, and 
earnest solicitude of the man of God fixed the truth so firmly 
on her mind that she sought and found pardon through faith in 
Jesus. She at once gave up her worldly companions and pur- 
suits. Her fond parents used their utmost efforts to win back 
her affections to the world, but in vain. As a last resort, her 
father gave a large party to the most worldly and fashionable 
persons in the city. A more busy scene of pleasure-loving 
gaiety was never witnessed. During the evening it was arranged 
that their daughter should be invited to sing and play on the 
piano one of those fashionable airs to which they had so often 
listened with delight. Led by her father to the piano, she took 
her seat, and sang in a strain the most touching, because it 
came from the heart, and with a full, clear voice, that part of 
Charles Wesley's fine hymn which commences : — 

" No room for mirth or trifling here, 
For worldly hope, or worldly fear, 
If life so soon is gone." 

She had not sung through one verse before her father, who stood 
by her side, drooped his head. Every whisper ceased, and the 
most intense feeling pervaded the entire company. Every word 
of the hymn was spoken distinctly, and heard by every one 
present ; each seemed an arrow from the Spirit's quiver, going 



38 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 44! 



directly to the hearts of the hearers. Her father retired to his 
room to weep for his own sinful folly with a deeply-stricken 
heart. Mary had conquered. For many years she lived to 
adorn her godly profession, and she passed away at last in 
triumph to the skies. 

A similar anecdote is related by Belcher, an American 
author, of the daughter of an English nobleman, who, in like 
manner, preferred to sing the same verses instead of her song 
in turn with other young ladies present. The noble Lord 
became converted, abandoned worldly company, joined the 
people of God, and during his religious life distributed to pro- 
mote the spread of the Gospel one hundred thousand pounds ! 

Methodism was established in the village of Rookly, in the 
Isle of Wight, about 1783. In that society there was a youth 
named Thomas Whitewood, whose devotedness to God, con- 
stancy, fervour in the means of grace, and usefulness in prayer 
meetings, public and social, had attracted general notice. 
One morning while at w r ork in his father's barn he was heard 
singing that very solemn hymn of Charles Wesley's com- 
mencing — 

" And am I only born to die ? " 

the last verse of which is as follows — 

" Jesus, vouchsafe a pitying ray ; 
Be Thou my guide, be Thou my way 

To glorious happiness ! 
Ah, write the pardon on my heart, 
And whensoe'er I hence depart, 

Let me depart in peace ! " 

Scarcely had he expressed the devout breathings of his heart to 
God in this remarkable language, than he fell and expired. 
This sudden death made a deep impression on many hearts, 
and so aroused the conscience of one youth, named Robert 
Bull, as to lead to his conversion to God. 

Methodism was commenced at Haddenham in 1820, in a 
barn ; and amongst the early worshippers in that primitive 
place of worship was Priscilla Paine, then feeling the sorrows of 
widowhood. Here the Lord was pleased to manifest Himself 
to her in His saving power, and she soon identified herself with 
the people of God, and opened her house for His servants. Her 



Hy. 44.] 



mid its Associations. 



39 



convictions of sin were deepened by the minister giving out 
the hymn commencing — 

"Lo, God is here, let us adore," &c. ; 

and at the closing scene, after a life of devoted service to the 
Master's cause, she oft repeated the last verse of Hymn 44 — 

i 'Jesus, vouchsafe a pitying ray," &c., 

adding, on one occasion after doing so, " Is not that sweet — 
Jesus is precious. What He wills is best. My God is recon- 
ciled, and all is well. Come, Lord Jesus." She lay down in 
peace, and her spirit returned to God who gave it. 

Hymn 45. — "Shrinking from the cold hand of death."-- 
Genesis xlix. 33 ; and Nitmbers xx. 28. — Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

This hymn is made up of parts of two of Charles Wesley's 
"Short Scripture Hymns," 1762. The third verse is based on 
Numbers xx. 28, commencing — " O that without a lingering 
groan," &c. This verse was generally given out by John 
Wesley at the close of the society meetings he held after 
evening preaching — a custom and a choice worthy of wider 
extension. Illustrative examples of the use of this hymn are so 
numerous, that every verse, and almost every line has its own 
special interest. 

Amongst the accidents which have hurried immortal souls 
into eternity, none have been more fatal than those occurring in 
collieries. Towards the class of people employed in mining, 
Methodism has especially devoted its energies, and many 
blessed results are on record as the reward of those labours. 
John Jones, of Ashton-under-Lyne, was for some years a faithful 
member of the Methodist Society. On the day of his death he 
uttered a sentence in his family prayer which expressed a hope 
that they might all meet in heaven, and said to a leader that he 
would set out afresh to serve the Lord. At noon of the same 
day he repeated to the members of his family the verse — 

" Shrinking from the cold hand of death, 
I too shall gather up my feet, 
Shall soon resign my fleeting breath, 
And die, my father's God to meet." 

At one o'clock he entered the coal-mine, and wrought till ten 
o'clock at night, when, being drawn to the surface of the earth, 



40 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 46. 



the rope slipped, and he fell to the bottom of the pit a lifeless 
corpse. Many die as suddenly — would that all died as safely. 

But few of the victims of that terrible scourge, consumption, 
have afforded to them opportunities for repentance during their 
rapid march into eternity. Mrs Fox, wife of the missionary, 
W. B. Fox, of Ceylon, was a happy believer in early life, 
and devoted to God her best energies. When her end was 
drawing near, she often repeated her favourite hymn, com- 
mencing — 

" Shrinking from the cold hand of death," &c. 

So partial was she to that hymn that she got an old Hymn- 
book bound and clasped with silver, because it contained the 
hymn (unabridged) with her favourite verse, as follows : — 

" Walk with me through the dreadful shade, 
And, certified that Thou art mine, 
My spirit, calm and undismayed, 
I shall into Thy hands resign." 

The experience of James Thomas, a leader of three classes at 
Haverfordwest, and a man who walked with God, led him to 
repeat with animation and delight just before he died such 
hymns as " Rock of Ages " and 

" Shrinking from the cold hand of death." 

He died in the faith and hope of the Gospel. 

Mrs Bullivant, mother of the Rev. W. J. Bullivant, was a 
careful student of God's Word, and of all the writings of the 
worthies of Methodism. She relied implicitly on the atonement 
of Christ for salvation, and often repeated this verse of her 
favourite hymn — 

" O that without a lingering groan 
I may the welcome word receive; 
My body with my charge lay down, 
And cease at once to work and live." 

While in the act of rising from bed, her spirit fled to the paradise 
of God. 

Hymn 46. — " The morning flowers display their sweets." — On 
the Death of a Young Lady. Isa. xL 6, 8. — Tune, Kettlesby, 
1761. 

This hymn was written by the Rev. Samuel Wesley, jun., in 



Hy. 46.] 



and its Associations. 



41 



the year 1735. It is an exquisitely fine composition. It was 
published first by John Wesley in " Hymns and Sacred Poems, 5 ' 
enlarged edition, 1743. 

Hymn 46. — " Come, let us anew Our journey pursue." — For 
New Year 's Day.— Tune, New Year's Day, 1761. 

Owing to editorial oversight, about the year 1807, when the 
Hymn-book underwent several alterations, there have been two 
hymns with this number. This is one of C Wesley's Hymns 
for the New Year, 1750. 

It is a fine lively composition, admirably adapted by its 
appropriate and weighty sentiments for the solemn service for 
which it is used. There is a peculiarity about the long and 
short syllables which gives ease to the rapid flow of the words, 
and testifies with what ease even difficult metres were composed 
by C. Wesley. 

Grace and providence often co-operate. A little girl, belong- 
ing to the Scotch Church, was permitted by her father to go to 
the watch-night service of the Methodists in Aberdeen, on con- 
dition that she remembered the text, and repeated it on her return 
home. At the end of the service the accustomed hymn was 
sung, 

" Come, let us anew Our journey pursue, 
Roll round with the year," &c. 

This was to her a novelty, and so fixed in the child's mind a 
love towards Methodism, that she ultimately became a member 
of the Society, and the wife of the Rev. John Shipman, Wesleyan 
minister. The text failed to influence her mind seriously, but 
the last hymn did so effectually. 

Mrs Holy, of Sheffield, began to serve God in early life, and 
during a period of more than threescore years and ten took 
unceasing pleasure in helping forward the cause of God and 
Methodism. When laid aside by weakness and age, she de- 
lighted in repeating Wesley's hymns. The family not being 
able to attend the watch-night service, they were called together 
for a special service in the house, when she addressed some 
faithful and loving words to them, closing the service by singing 
the New Year's Hymn, in which she heartily joined. This was 
the last service she attended on earth. Extreme weakness set 
in ; but her confidence in God was unshaken, and her last 
words were, " I do feel Christ precious/' 



42 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 47- 



The death of one person is often the awakening to spiritual 
life of many. Mrs Hobkinson, of Harrowgate, was called to part 
with her son, an event which awakened her to a sense of her 
lost state as a sinner. She sought and found redemption, and 
to the end of life maintained her confidence in God. A little 
before her departure she attempted to sing part of the New 
Year's Hymn — 

" O that each in the day Of His coming may say, 
I have fought my way through." 

Adding with increased emphasis the last line — 

" I have finish'd the work Thou didst give me to do." 

Hymn 47. — "Pass a few swiftly-fleeting years." — "I am going the 
way of all the earth" (Joshua xxiii. 14). — Tune, PurcelPs, 
1 761. 

This forms No. 387, vol. i., of Charles Wesley's " Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," 1762. Mr Wesley's volumes of Scripture Hymns are 
too little known ; most of the hymns are concise, but some few 
are lengthy. They are two thousand and thirty in number, and 
are founded on particular texts throughout all the books of the 
Bible. " Some of them/' observes the Rev. Thomas Jackson, 
" display a singular ingenuity, and nearly all breathe a spirit of 
pure and fervent devotion. They prove the author to have been 
a diligent, accurate, and critical student of the Sacred Books, 
and often throw an interesting light upon important passages. 
The metres are agreeably varied, and the entire work is perhaps 
one of the best uninspired manuals for the closet of the Chris- 
tian that was ever published in the English language." They 
appeared in 1762, second edition in 1794-6. 

The author, in his preface, remarks, " God having graciously 
laid His hand upon my body, and disabled me for the principal 
work of the ministry, has thereby given me an unexpected occa- 
sion of writing these hymns. Many of the thoughts are borrowed 
from Mr Henry's Comment, Dr Gell on the Pentateuch, and 
Bengelius on the New Testament. Several of the hymns are 
intended to prove, and several to guard, the doctrine of Chris- 
tian perfection. My desire is rightly to divide the word of 
truth. But who is sufficient for these things ? Who can check 
the self-confident without discouraging the self- diffident ? 



Hy. 48.] 



and its Associations. 



43 



Reader, if God ministers grace to thy soul through any of these 
hymns, offer up a prayer for the weak instrument, that, whenever 
I finish my course, I may depart in peace, having seen in Jesus 
Christ His great salvation." 

How many thousands did offer up a prayer for the " weak 
instrument!" and how many thousands have been blessed as 
the result of those labours ! What a glorious ending had their 
author ! " My brother Charles fell asleep so quietly, that they 
who sat by him did not see when he died." So wrote John 
Wesley in a letter to Henry Moore, the original of which is 
now before the writer. Even the last utterances of that godly 
poet have been a source of comfort, hope, and consolation to 
hundreds since his death ; and those glowing words of trust in 
Christ are the poet's last legacy to the Church. Charles Wesley, 
a few days before his death, composed his own epitaph. Having 
been silent and quiet for some time, he called Mrs Wesley to 
him, and bid her write as he dictated : — 

" In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem ! 
Jesus, my only hope Thou art, 
Strength of my failing flesh and heart ; 
O ! could I catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity ! " 

" In age and feebleness extreme/' has been used on hun- 
dreds of death-beds by devout followers of Christ in the Metho- 
dist Societies. Vide appendix at the end of the volume. 

Two points of doctrine were introduced into the " Short 
Hymns" by Charles Wesley, in which he differs from his 
brother John. They were Spiritual Darkness and Christian 
Perfection. Many of the hymns in the collection are taken 
from this work, but not any in which the controverted points of 
doctrine are found. These two volumes were reprinted in an 
altered and abridged form after the author's death. 

Hymn 48.— "Ah, lovely appearance of death !" — On the Sight 
of a Corpse, — Tune, Funeral, 1761. 

The original is one of Charles Wesley's " Funeral Hymns," a 
tract of twenty-four pages, first published in 1744, and of which 
nine editions appeared. 

There have been differences of opinion as to the appropriate- 



44 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 48. 



ness of some of the language used in this hymn. The Rev. 
Richard Watson says that Charles Wesley's Funeral Hymns 
have too little of the softness of sorrow in them, but they are 
written in the fulness of faith which exclaims, even over the 
grave, " Thanks be to God, which giveth us the victory, through 
our Lord Jesus Christ. " There is an interesting and appropriate 
illustration to this hymn in Mr Arthur's " Life of Mr Budgett," 
of Bristol, the octavo edition, 1852, in the death of Betty Coles 
(pages 89, 90), which is worth the reader's attention. Byron, in 
his " Giaour," records similar sentiments in describing death ; 
and Caroline Bowles, who became the wife of Robert Southey, 
poet-laureate, has written this passage : — 

" And is this death ? Dread thing ! 
If such thy visiting, 

How beautiful thou art ! 

Mrs Hall, the poet's sister Martha, could not look at a corpse, 
because she said it was " beholding sin sitting on his throne." 
She objected strongly to the opening lines of this fine hymn — 

" Ah ! lovely appearance of death ! 
No sight upon earth is so fair." 

John Wesley altered the words " No sight" to " W T hat sight," 
thus greatly modifying the strength of his brother's language by 
changing a harsh assertion into inquiry. A subsequent editor 
has altered a line in the fifth verse from " Sealed up in eternal 
repose " to " Sealed up in their mortal repose." 

An extract or two from the journal of Charles Wesley will throw 
further light on this hymn. 

Under date of Cardiff, August 12-14, 1744, Mr Charles Wesley 
relates having preached in the Castle-yard, and having visited 
two sick brethren. The next day he observes, " I was much 
revived by our dying brother, who is now ready to be offered 
up. I asked him whether he would rather die or live? He 
answered, ' To depart, and be with Christ, is far better.' He is 
a pattern for all Christian graces, and was the first in Cardiff 
to receive the gospel of full salvation." The next day, Mr 
Wesley records, " we prayed last night with joy, full of glory for 
our departing brother, just while he gave up his spirit — as I 
pray God I may give up mine. This morning I expounded 
that last best triumph of faith. c I have fought a good fight,' 
&c. The Lord administered strong consolation to those that 



Hy. 49.] and its Associations. 



45 



love His appearing. We sung a song of victory for our deceased 
friend, then went to the house, and rejoiced, and gave thanks ; 
and rejoiced again with singing over him. The spirit, at its 
departure, had left marks of its happiness on the clay. No 

SIGHT UPON EARTH, IN MY EYES, IS HALF SO LOVELY." 

John Wesley, in his journal, June 28, 1786, writes, "This 
morning Abigail Pilsworth, aged fourteen, was born into the 
world of spirits. I talked with her the evening before, and 
found her ready for the Bridegroom. A few hours after, she 
quietly fell asleep. When we went into the room where her 
remains lay we were surprised : a more beautiful CORPSE I 
never saw. We all sung — 

" ' Ah, lovely appearance of death ! ' 

All the company were in tears, but they were tears of joy." 
The Cardiff incident doubtless originated this hymn. 

Hymn 49. — " Rejoice for a brother deceased." — A Funeral 
Hymn. — Tune, Sion, 1761. 

This forms the second of Charles Wesley's " Funeral Hymns," 
in the tract just named. Mrs Hall, the author's sister, commended 
this while she was unfavourable to the previous hymn. This was 
a great favourite with the author himself in the decline of life. Mr 
Henry Moore relates this anecdote of him when nearly eighty 
years of age : — " He rode every day (clothed as for winter even in 
summer) a little horse, grey with age. When he mounted, if a 
subject struck his mind, he proceeded to expand and put it in 
order. He would write a hymn thus given him on a card, with 
his pencil, in short-hand. Not unfrequently he has come to the 
house in the City-road, and having left his pony in the garden 
in front (the property was not then enclosed in wall and iron 
rails as it now is), he would enter crying out ' Pen and ink ! pen 
and ink.' These being supplied, he would write the hymn he 
had composed in his mind, and deposit it in his pocket-book." 
That same pocket-book, with two of Charles Wesley's manuscript 
hymns in its folds, is now in the possession of the writer of 
these notes. Mr Moore proceeds, " When this was done, he 
would look round on those present and salute them with much 
kindness, and thus put all in mind of eternity. He was fond of 
repeating the third stanza of this hymn on such occasions, 
which commences — 



46 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 51. 



" There all the ship's company meet, 
Who sailed with the Saviour beneath," &c. 

William Hindson, of Hegdale, Penrith, many years a local 
preacher and leader, maintained intimate, happy, and sanctify- 
ing communion with God during a long life, and closed it with 
calm assurance of heaven, leaving as his closing testimony the 
lines — 

" There all the ship's company meet, 
Who sailed with the Saviour beneath. " 

Edward Maden, of the Burnley circuit, realised during his last 
illness an ecstacy of joy, and heavenly consolation ; and the full 
assurance of his heavenly inheritance he declared in the verse 
commencing — 

' 1 There all the ship's company meet ; " 

adding, " I shall soon be one of them, and shall meet many 
whom I have known on earth who will welcome me home." 

The honoured son of an honoured sire in the Wesleyan 
ministry, Nathaniel Francis Woolmer, of Gloucester, was a 
useful member and leader in Methodism ; and by a consistency 
of religious profession manifested his " walk with God." His 
delight in the services of the sanctuary, and in doing good to the 
bodies and souls of those around him, have made his memory 
precious. Often, when engaged in prayer, his face became 
radiant with joy, as well as when he spoke of the Saviour, 
or repeated portions of Scripture and of his favourite hymns. 
With remarkable feeling he quoted, as indicative of the hope 
that was in him at the end of his pilgrimage, the verse com- 
mencing — 

" There all the ship's company meet," &c. 

Hymn 50. — " Blessing, honour, thanks, and praise." — A Funeral 
Hymn. — Tune, Love Feast, 1761. 

This was first published in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1742. 

Hymn 51. — " Hark ! a voice divides the sky." — A Funeral 
Hymn. — Tune, Ascension, ij6i. 

This hymn is found in the same volume as the preceding. It 
is worthy of remark that the tunes affixed to this and the pre- 



Hy. 52.] 



and its Associations. 



47 



ceding hymn, indicate a much stronger leaning to the joys of 
the departed than the sorrows of the bereaved. Both these 
hymns are unaltered reprints. 

The exultant tone which runs through this hymn has been 
caught by many a redeemed spirit on the border-land of both 
worlds, but was perhaps never more fully exhibited than in the 
closing scene of that devoted young missionary, the Rev. James 
H. Wayte. He had reached Freetown, Sierra Leone, and 
gladdened the hearts of the resident missionaries by his arrival. 
Rejoicing in the consciousness that Christ is able to cleanse 
from all sin, his desire to make known this great salvation was 
manifested by his intense zeal ; but Divine Providence cut short 
his earthly career. Suffering much from the time of his arrival 
in Africa, fever soon set in, and hastened him home to heaven. 
Ere the vital spark fled, Mr Dove, a brother missionary, visited 
him, and attempted to pray with him, but he was interrupted by 
the dying youth, who began to invoke the Divine blessing upon 
all his late brother students at Richmond. After a pause, he 
said, " O glory be to Jesus ! I feared I should depart without 
a shout for my Lord ; but He would not allow it ; bless His 
gracious name. I have preached Christ in life, though very 
unfaithfully ; and I will preach Him in death." Then raising 
his voice to a higher pitch, he added — 

" ' Mortals cry, A man is dead ! 
Angels shout, A child is born ! ' " 

In this strain he continued for two hours. Soon afterwards 
he seemed to get a glimpse of the better land ; and just before 
he breathed out his spirit, he exclaimed, " Beautiful I O how 
beautiful ! " and entered into rest. 

Hymn 52.— "Again we lift our voice."— On the Death of 
Samuel Hutchins. — Tune, Irene, 1761. 

The original appears in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. Samuel Hutchins was a Cornish smith, 
one of the first race of Methodist preachers, who died at an early 
age. An account of his life, written by his father, was published 
by John Wesley in 1746. 

William Parkin, of Hightown, was a zealous Yorkshire 
Methodist, who, yielding to the strivings of the Spirit of God, 
knelt down under a hedge, and, whilst praying there, entered 



4 8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



fHY. 53. 



into the liberty of the children of God. The testimony of his 
acceptance was clear and abiding, and abated nothing of its 
intensity in his latest hours. Shortly before death, he said, 
" My soul delights in God. Singing and praying never hurts 
me." To a brother local preacher, he said, his countenance 
radiant with a heavenly smile, " I am on the Rock, and feel it 
will bear me up." Expecting his end, he added, " before you 
take my body from the house, sing the verse — 

" 1 Again we lift our voice, 
And shout our solemn joys ! 
Cause of highest raptures this, 

Raptures that shall never fail : 
See a soul escaped to bliss, 

Keep the Christian festival. \ " 

Whilst speaking to his wife of his intention to take an hour's 
drive out in the afternoon, he fell lifeless on the floor ! 

Hymn 53. — " Give glory to Jesus our Head." — On the Death of 
a Widow. — Tune, Sion, 1761. 

This hymn is No. 158 in the second volume of Charles 
Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749. The original is 
eight lines longer, and two words are altered. 

The poet has expressed an idea in the second verse which is 
worthy of remark ; it is — 

" Where glorified spirits, by sight, 
Converse in their holy abode." 

That intercourse should be carried on by sight, in the heavenly 
state, is certainly novel ; and yet the same thought is stated in 
a passage by Butler in his " Hudibras," which runs thus — 

1 i Oh, who but lovers can converse 
Like angels by the eye discourse ? 
Address and compliment by vision." 

The parish of Madeley is classic ground ; and some of its 
memories are such as bring to mind those of Bethany. There 
John Wesley often preached ; and amongst his hearers was one 
Betsy Piggot, who, in 1785, the year in which John Fletcher 
died, was married to Thomas Milner. Convinced of sin under 
Mr Wesley, and led to Christ by the teaching of Mrs Fletcher, 
in whose class she was a member, her religious character was 
formed on the most Godlike model. Becoming a widow in 



Hy. 55-] and its Associations. 49 



1 819, for forty years she was esteemed and loved for her work's 
sake, by both the Church and the world. For eighty-five years 
she enjoyed and used for the glory of God the blessing of health ; 
and her trust in God was in no way abated when weakness 
and decay oppressed her. The day before her death, she said, 
" ' Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord.' That is my case." 
Her last pcean was, " O Lord God, Rock of my salvation." 
Having sung this, she went straight to heaven. All business 
was suspended at the time of her funeral ; and her remains 
were placed in the earth in front of Madeley Vicarage, and close 
to those of her endeared friends, John and Mary Fletcher, the 
funeral service being conducted by a grandson of the devout 
Hester Ann Rogers. While the vast crowd stood uncovered 
round the grave, the fifty-third hymn was sung, which thus 
commences — 

' ' Give Glory to Jesus our Head, 

With all that encompass His throne ; 
A widow, a widow indeed, 
A mother in Israel is gone 1 " &c. 

Hymn 54. — " Hearken to the solemn voice." — A Midnight 
Hymn. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley, and published in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1742. The passage in St Luke xii. 35 seems 
to have suggested the third verse. This is the first hymn in the 
section " Describing Judgment" 

Hymn 55. — " Thou Judge of quick and dead." — For the 
Watchnight—Timv, Olney, 1761. 
First published in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. In the fourth verse, " Our lot " is changed 
to " A lot." 

A venerable man was Richard Burdsall, of York ; and his 
daughter, the mother of Richard and John Lyth, was scarcely 
less pious. When twelve years old, she gave herself to the 
Lord, and her piety grew with her growth. During her last 
days, her full heart overflowed in songs of praise, even in the 
night season. On being told that her end was approaching, she 
rejoiced greatly that she was going home. On the day before 
her death, she repeated — 

iJt O may I thus be found 
Obedient to His word ; 

D 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 57. 



Attentive to the trumpet's sound, 
And looking for my Lord." 

Her last words were, " Praise, glory, my Father, my Redeemer." 
Thus closed a life fragrant with holiness and peace. 

Hymn 56. — " He comes ! He comes ! the Judge severe." — Thy 
Kingdom come. — Tune, Judgment, 1761. 

This forms number 37 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns of Inter- 
cession for all Mankind," 1758. It is worthy of remark here, that 
" neither the delight of social intercourse, nor the spiritual pros- 
perity of his own people, could induce Charles Wesley to forget 
the public welfare, and the cause of religion generally. England 
was at war with several states on the Continent, domestic tran- 
quillity was menaced, Protestant interests were in peril, the 
clergy were asleep at the post of duty, and ungodliness and sin 
everywhere prevailed at the time when Charles Wesley wrote 
his 6 Hymns of Intercession for all Mankind.'" So manifest 
was the peril, that the principal Methodist societies had a 
special meeting for prayer every Friday at noon, to intercede 
with God on behalf of the Church, the nation, and the world. 
To assist those services, and to fan the flame of Christian 
patriotism, Mr Wesley published these hymns. From this 
small work seven hymns in the Wesleyan collection are taken, 
namely, hymns 56, 66, 441, 442, 443, 444, 451. There are forty 
hymns in the tract ; it appeared originally without author's 
name or date, and this fact may help to account for the strange 
and alien appropriation for so long a period of hymn 66, " Lo ! 
He comes with clouds descending," which is taken from its 
pages. 

Hymn 57. — "The great Archangel's trump shall sound."— 
After Deliverance from Death by the fall of a House — 
Tune, Canon, 1761. 
The original forms number 174 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. ii., and commences, "Glory and 
thanks to God we give." The first five verses are omitted ; this 
hymn begins with the sixth verse of the original. The accident 
which originated this fine composition is related in Charles 
Wesley's journal. On his third visit to Leeds he met the society 
in an old upper room, which was densely packed, and crowds 
could not gain admission. He removed nearer the door, that 



Hy. s 9 .] 



and its Associations. 



those without might hear, and drew the people towards him. 
Instantly the rafters broke off short, close to the main beam, the 
floor sank, and more than one hundred people fell, amid dust 
and ruins, into the room below. One sister had her arm broken, 
and set immediately ; rejoicing with joy unspeakable. Another, 
strong in faith, was so crushed, that she expected instant death, 
but she was without fear, and only said, in calm faith, " Jesus, 
receive my spirit." A boy of eighteen, who had come to make 
a disturbance, who struck several women on entering, was taken 
up roaring, " I will be good ! I will be good ! " They got his 
leg set, which was broken in two places. The preacher did not 
fall, but slid down softly, and lighted on his feet. His hand was 
bruised, and part of the skin rubbed off his head. He lost his 
senses, but recovered them in a moment, and was filled with 
power from above. He writes, " I lifted up my head and saw 
the people under me, heaps upon heaps. I cried out, ' Fear 
not : the Lord is with us ; our lives are all safe ; ' and then 
gave out, 4 Praise God, from whom all blessings flow.' " Several 
were seriously hurt, but none killed. After such a deliverance 
was this hymn written. It commences, " Glory and thanks to 
God we give ; " and after twenty lines, in which there are evident 
references to this remarkable escape from death, the sixth verse 
commences, "The great Archangel's trump shall sound," &c. 
This accident took place March 14, 1744. 

Only the possession of mighty faith in God could give the 
calmness and composure of mind which are indicated in this 
sublime composition. 

Hymn 58. — "Jesus, faithful to His word. — A Funeral Hymn. — 
Tune, Hamilton's, 1781. 

This hymn was first published in Charles Wesley's " Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," 1742. The original has six verses, the 
first three of which are omitted. It is based on 1 Thess. iv. 13. 
The first line reads thus : " Let the world lament their 
dead," &c. 

HYMN 59. — " Thou God of glorious majesty." — A Hymn for 
Seriousness. — Tune, Snowsfield's, 1761. 

This hymn is found in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The Sheffield poet, Montgomery, says of 
this hymn : " It is a sublime contemplation, solemn, collected, 



52 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 59. 



unimpassioned thought, but thought occupied with that which 
is of everlasting import to a dying man, standing on the lapse 
of a moment between two eternities." Tradition states that this 
hymn was written by Charles Wesley after a visit to Land's End, 
Cornwall, in July 1743; but Mr Thomas Jackson, in "Mr 
Wesley's Life," says there is no proof thereof. There is at the 
Land's End a narrow neck of land betwixt two unbounded seas 
— the Bristol Channel to the north, and the English Channel to 
the south ; or, we may add, the Great Atlantic Ocean to the west, 
and the German Ocean to the east, all uniting at this point. 
The tradition is natural, and seems well supported ; it is 
given by Dr Adam Clarke in a manuscript letter before the 
writer, without doubt or hesitation ; Dr Clarke knew Charles 
Wesley personally, and the letter containing the tradition was 
written partly in pencil on the "narrow neck of land" itself, 
and finished at "the first inn in England," situated at the 
Land's End. Mr Thomas Taylor, a Methodist preacher, who 
visited the Land's End in 1761, records the words : " Here Mr 
Charles Wesley wrote, 6 Lo ! on a narrow neck of land/ &c." 

In the third verse, Mr Wesley introduces an unusual word 
amongst Christians — " And tremble on the brink of fate." The 
word fate not only comes in to suit the rhyme, but is in this 
instance of its use a proper rescuing of the word from the claim 
of the infidel : fate, from fatum, what is spoken or decreed by 
Almighty power and goodness, and here it is applied to death. 

Amongst the early friends of Methodism in Pilsley village, in 
the Peak of Derbyshire, Luke Bridge will be remembered with 
gratitude and affection. Once, in the Conference prayer-meet- 
ing at Sheffield, he asked the assembly to " help him to pray 
for poor Pilsley." For more than thirty years he ceased not 
to strive to bring his neighbours to God. At the end of his 
pilgrimage, protracted to more than fourscore years, he recorded 
his sentiments in the language of his favourite hymns, one of 
which was, "Thou God of glorious majesty," &c. He was 
eminent for his interceding power in prayer. 

Mrs Ann Brown, the wife of the Rev. J. R. Brown, began to 
meet in class at the age of sixteen ; and from that time to the 
end of her life her uprightness of conduct and seriousness of 
demeanour secured for her the affectionate regard of a large 
circle of friends. At Whitby, her recovery from serious illness 
she attributed to the goodness of God in answer to the prayers 



Hv. 6 1.] 



and its Associations. 



S3 



of the people. An attack of typhus fever in Sunderland made 
short work with her ; and when told that medical skill could do 
no more for her, she replied, " The will of the Lord be done," 
and added — 

" Lo ! on a narrow neck of land, 
'Twixt two unbounded seas I stand," &c. 

Her mind was occupied with repeating portions of Scripture 
and hymns during her short stay on earth ; and she expired in 
peace. 

Hymn 60. — "Righteous God! whose vengeful phials." — For the 
Year 1756. — Tune, Westminster, 1761. 

This hymn forms number 15 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for 
the year 1756," where it has six stanzas, the third and fourth 
being left out by John Wesley, as not suited for popular use. 

The Government of the time appointed the 6th of February 
1756 as a day of fasting and humiliation before God ; and to 
improve the occasion Charles Wesley wrote the seventeen 
hymns which form this tract. Hymns 60, 61, and 62 are 
selected from this tract, and three more sublime compositions 
have seldom been written. The fast was observed with deep 
solemnity ; the churches were all crowded, and a solemn serious- 
ness sat on every face, " such as had not been seen," says John 
Wesley, " since the Restoration." The tract, possessing so 
much beauty and strength, and breathing so much fervent and 
elevated piety, quickly passed to a second edition, in the title 
of which the reference to the fast-day was omitted. 

Hymn 61. — "Stand the omnipotent decree." — For the year 
1756.— Tune, Kings wood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, written early in 1756 ; as fine a composition 
as ever came from an uninspired mind. " It is a strain more 
than human." 

Mr Montgomery says — " It begins with a note abrupt and 
awakening, like the sound of the last trumpet. This is alto- 
gether one of the most daring and victorious nights of our 
author." Young's "Night Thoughts " doubtless suggested 
several of the sentiments and expressions in the hymn, — see 
Night vi., — but in this, as in other instances, Young is greatly 
improved in sublimity and grandeur by Wesley. The first six 



54 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 65. 



books of 'Young's "Night Thoughts" were published several 
years before Charles Wesley wrote this grand hymn, and 
whilst some of Young's conceptions are lofty and impressive, 
Wesley's are much more so. An interesting literary discus- 
sion on this point is given in " Adam Clarke Portrayed," by 
James Everett, vol. ii., 1844, page 339. 

Hymn 62. — " How happy are the little flock." — On the Over- 
throw of Lisbon by an Earthquake. — Tune, Chapel, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley in December 1755, 011 tne occa- 
sion indicated by the title. It forms the last of the seventeen 
hymns in the tract of " Fast-day Hymns," published early in the 
year 1756. This composition exhibits the calm faith in the 
divine love and protection which so eminently characterised 
the early Methodists. Besides the excitement caused by the 
terrible earthquake, the English nation was daily expecting an 
invasion by the French. 

Hymn 63. — " Woe to the men on earth who dwell ;" 

„ 64. — " By faith we find the place above " (Rev. xvi. 16). 
Occasioned by the Earthquake at Lisbon. — T UNE, Brockmer, 1 76 1 . 

These two hymns form one of Charles W esley's " Earthquake 
Hymns," 1756, the second edition of a work which was first pub- 
lished in 1750. The original is four verses longer. In the third 
line John Wesley has made an alteration. " Lo, from their 
roots " is changed to " Lo ! from their seats," &c. 

Hymn 65. — "Ye virgin souls, arise." — For the Watchnight. — 
TUNE, Trumpet, 1761. 

This is from Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. ii. The original is one verse longer. It forms a fine 
paraphrase of the parable of the ten virgins. 

In the ranks of God's heroes, no one will have a more pro- 
minent place than Samuel Hick, the " village blacksmith " of 
Micklefield, Yorkshire. He was a man of upright character, 
untiring energy, deep piety, and singular usefulness. Often he 
said he had but one talent, but he was determined that it 
should never be given to the man who had ten, for he would 
use it up by hard trading. When, after three-score years and 
ten, he felt the tabernacle was being taken down, he exclaimed, 
" Glory be to God ; I have as much religion as will carry me to 



Hy. 66.] 



and its Associations. 



55 



heaven, but I have none to spare for either my wife or children." 
His last words, distinctly uttered, were — " Peace, joy, and love ! 
peace, joy, and love \ n His friends joined in singing the sixty- 
fifth hymn, " Ye virgin souls, arise," &c. When they came to the 
fifth verse — 

" The everlasting doors 

Shall soon the saints receive, 
Above yon angel powers 
In glorious joy to live ; 
Far from a world of grief and sin 
With God eternally shut in," 

here he lifted up his dying hand, and waved it round and 
round, till it fell upon the bed ; then he lifted up his fore-finger, 
and turned it round to show that he was going, as he had often 
said he should like to go, " in full sail into the harbour." We 
visited the house and room in which he died more than thirty 
years after the event, and his memory was fragrant as ever 
there ; and not a few were living who delighted to relate inci- 
dents of that good man's Christian heroism. 

More gentle in disposition, and not less faithful in the service 
of God, was Mrs Margaret Scott, of Newcastle. Like " Sammy 
Hick," she never allowed sin to go unreproved. After a life of 
scrupulous integrity and unspotted piety, on her death-bed she 
felt her confidence in the merits of Christ to be unshaken. 
Shortly before her death she sang twice, in a plaintive manner, 
the verse — 

" He comes, He comes, to call 

The nations to His bar, 
And raise to glory all 

Who fit for glory are : 
Make ready for your full reward, 
Go forth with joy to meet your Lord." 

She tried it a third time, and her voice failed her ; but she 
added, "What a strange thing that I should gain a full reward ! 
a full reward ! " In this happy frame of mind she soon entered 
on its enjoyment. 

Hymn 66.* — " Lo ! He comes with clouds descending." — Thy 
Kingdom come, — Tune, Olivers (Helmsley,), 1761. 

The original of this grand hymn forms No. 29 in Charles 
Wesley's " Hymns of Intercession for all Mankind," 1758. This 
was not inserted in the collection till after Mr Wesley's death. 



56 



Tlie Methodist Hymn^Book 



[Hy. 66. 



The notion that Thomas Olivers wrote this fine composition is 
entirely without evidence to support it. Olivers wrote the tune 
to it, and it appears in Mr Wesley's "Sacred Melody," 1761, 
with the proper words to the tune ; and as the tune is named 
after its author, Olivers, it has been supposed that both words 
and tune were produced by him. Investigation for years 
by many minds has now settled the dispute. Charles Wesley 
wrote the hymn as it now appears in the Wesleyan collection. 
The tune written by Olivers, and long known by his name, is 
now called " Helmsley." Both the hymn and tune are spirited 
compositions, and well adapted for either cheerful or solemn 
subjects. 

" In death not divided," or but little, may be said of many 
family ties amongst the Lord's people. It was less than a year 
and a half since the Rev. William Pemberton had died in peace 
at Newcastle, that Mrs Pemberton, at Leeds, was called some- 
what suddenly to rejoin the redeemed spirit of her husband. 
Seized with typhus fever, recovery was soon found to be hope- 
less ; but if her time was come, her work was done — she was 
ready, prepared to meet the Bridegroom. Just as the mortal 
conflict ended, with her latest breath she sang — 
" Lo ! He comes with clouds descending, 
Once for favour'd sinners slain," &c, 
when she calmly fell asleep in Jesus, leaving nine young orphan 
children to the care of God and His Church. 

Enduring a long life of affliction, relieved only by the conso- 
lations of the gospel, Mrs Sarah Edwards, of Seefton-Bach, Lud- 
low, realised a comforting assurance of her acceptance with 
God. The day before she died, her peace rose to triumphant 
joy, so that she exclaimed, a Conquering ! conquering ! glory! 
glory ! " she then sang the hymn commencing, " Lo ! He comes 
with clouds descending," &c, and fell asleep in Jesus. 

This hymn, like many others, has been used by the Holy 
Spirit to carry conviction to the sinner's heart, as well as to 
afford consolation to the departing saint. Elizabeth Nuttall, 
of Rochdale, at the age of nineteen, was invited to a Methodist 
prayer-meeting, and while the hymn was being sung, commenc- 
ing, " Lo ! He comes with clouds descending," &c, her mind 
was deeply convinced of sin, her distress became too much to be 
endured, and by faith she was enabled to believe to the salvation 
of her soul. She lived a consistent godly life, and died, saying, 



Hy. 67.] 



and its Associations. 



57 



4 ; Praise the Lord " He is my God." 

During the last illness of Mrs Sophia Charlotte Howes, she 
frequently said — "What a blessing it is that I found the Saviour 
when in health ; it could not be done now, I am too weak for 
that. Thank God ! I have now only to look to and trust in 
Jesus." As the end was approaching, she repeated some verses 
of the gospel by St John, after which she sang the third and 
fourth verses of the sixty-sixth hymn, commencing — 

" The dear tokens of His passion 

and — 

" Yea, Amen ! let all adore Thee," &c. 

The powers of nature then rapidly declined, and she ceased 
to breathe, exclaiming, " God be merciful to me a sinner ! " 

Hymn 67. — " How weak the thoughts, and vain." — Written on 
the Earthquake in London. — Tune, West Street, 1761. 

This forms No. 9 of Charles Wesley's " Earthquake Hymns/' 
1750. This hymn is the first in the fifth section of the collec- 
tion, with the title, " Describing Heaven." The original is in ten 
verses, only seven of which are given. 

The circumstances which caused this hymn to be written 
were briefly these : — On February 8, 1750, there was a terrible 
earthquake in London, and many panic-stricken people rushed 
in hot haste to the Methodist chapels. In twenty-eight days 
God gave the people of London a second and far severer shock. 
Charles Wesley was preaching in the Foundry Chapel, just re- 
peating his text, at a quarter past five a.m. The Foundry shook 
violently ; the alarmed people cried out ; the preacher changed 
his text and cried out, " Therefore will we not fear, though the 
earth be moved, and the hills be carried into the midst of the 
sea ; the God of Jacob is our refuge." God filled the preacher's 
heart with faith, and his mouth with suitable words, shaking the 
hearers' souls as well as their bodies. The excitement which spread 
over London baffles all description ; the people rushed in hot 
haste out of the city into Moorfields, Hyde Park, and other open 
spaces for safety. A mad dragoon intensified the wild excite- 
ment by declaring that all London would be swallowed up on 
April 4. The people believed the prediction, and at midnight 
Hyde Park was filled with people frantic with fear, to whom 
George Whitefield preached a sermon of masterly eloquence and 



5 8 The Methodist Hymn-Book [H Y. 68. 



power. Fear filled the Methodist preaching-house at midnight, 
and, observes Charles Wesley, " I preached my written sermon 
on the subject with great effect, and gave out several suitable 
hymns." It was a glorious night for the disciples of Jesus. 
The hymns composed for that occasion were nineteen in number, 
and they display all the highest qualities of the author's poetry. 

Fearing God from her youth, and joining the Methodist 
society at the age of fourteen, Mrs Elizabeth Sims, of the Lin- 
coln circuit, maintained her Christian integrity through life. 
During her last illness, she often called her family around her 
to join her in singing the praises of God. After a violent 
paroxysm of pain, she said, "My blessed Saviour ! what should 
I have done without Thee now ? " On her husband speaking 
of Jesus, she said, "'Tis heaven below to know Jesus." Then 
exerting all her remaining energies, she sang, with great ani- 
mation — 

" How happy then are we, 
Who build, O Lord, on Thee ! " &c. 

In the last note her voice faltered and died away, as her spirit 
returned to God. 

Hymn 68. — " How happy is the pilgrim's lot V 1 — The Pilgrim. 
— Tune, Chapel, 1761. 

The original was written by John Wesley, and forms No. 51 
in " Hymns for those that seek and those that have Redemp- 
tion," &c, 1 747. 

It was composed and published about five years before the 
author's marriage, and describes his own views and feelings on 
that question in terms of eloquent simplicity. It has been 
admired as a composition by multitudes who are not Methodists ; 
and viewed in connexion with the unhappy marriage of its gifted 
and pious author, it will always possess, to the Methodists in 
particular, a special attraction. One verse is omitted between 
the third and fourth ; and in the second verse " low design " is 
printed for " .redesign ;; in the original. 

This hymn has been a great favourite from the time of its first 
publication. The chief attraction of the poem clusters around 
the seventh verse, although the first and the last have had their 
special admirers. Mrs Bumby, of Thirsk, mother of the Rev, 
John Bumby, a woman of deep and sincere piety, benevolence, 
patience, humility, and affection, towards the end of life had her 



Hy. 68.] 



and its Associations. 



59 



affections weaned from all earthly things, and she delighted to 
sing the first verse of this hymn, as indicating that she was 
" Happy in her pilgrim's lot," but that " she only sojourned 
here." 

A cloud of witnesses cluster their affections around the follow- 
ing stanza — 

" There is my house and portion fair ; 
My treasure and my heart are there, 

And my abiding home ; 
For me my elder brethren stay, 
And angels beckon me away, 

And Jesus bids me come." 

The sainted and truly holy, devoted, and loving Mary Fletcher, 
of Madeley, after seventy-six years of toil, mourned because, 
through great weakness, from exhausted nature, she could toil 
no longer- Her sweet spirit said, " I am doing nothing ; neither 
working nor reading, praying nor praising ; only sleeping." 
Indeed, to her, doing nothing was very extraordinary. As the 
end approached, she said, " I am drawing near to glory ! " and 
soon after — 

' 4 There is my house and portion fair ; 
My treasure and my heart are there, 
And my abiding home." 

Shortly afterwards she added, " He lifts His hand and shows 
that I am graven there ! * Many more sweet words fell from 
her gracious lips ere the spirit fled. The last time she lay down 
she said to her beloved and attentive friend, Mary Tooth, " Now, 
if I can rest, I will ; but let our hearts be united in prayer : and 
the Lord bless both thee and me." She did rest, for shortly 
after midnight all was silent ; she was " asleep in Jesus," and the 
serenity of the face indicated the tranquillity of the heart. 

The short but glorious career of the Rev. Daniel M Allium, 
M.D., was crowned with a triumphant end. When failing health 
compelled him to cease his pulpit labours, he realised an inward 
calmness and peace, varied only by so much of the gracious 
presence of God as led him to cry out, " Lord, stay Thy hand, 
lest the tabernacle break." On the last Sabbath he remained on 
earth, knowing that his hours below were but few, he said to his 
wife, with emphasis and sweetness — 

" There is my house and portion fair," &c. 



6o 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 68. 



The great and constant peace he enjoyed he believed to be in 
answer to the prayers of the Lord's people. His last words 
were, " I build only on the merit of my Saviour." 

Mrs Horton, a beloved and useful class-leader, and the com- 
panion and helper of her husband, the Rev. W. Horton, during 
his missionary travels and labours, on reaching the end of her 
earthly pilgrimage, expressed her feelings by saying, " I am 
unspeakably happy ; oh help me to praise the Lord." As she 
lay rapidly sinking, she said, " I have now nothing to do but to 
praise God to all eternity." Her last words, breathed in a faint 
whisper, just as she was departing, were those which form the 
seventh verse of hymn sixty-eight — 

" There is my house and portion fair," &c. 

Venerable for her age, esteemed for her piety, and beloved for 
her godly example and Christian benevolence, Sarah Hall, of 
Bristol, wife of Mr John Hall, stands pre-eminent in the annals 
of Methodism. Joining her father's class at the age of thirteen, 
and receiving from John Wesley himself her first ticket, for 
more than seventy years she was a consistent member of the 
Methodist society, welcoming to her cheerful hospitality the 
leading worthies of the connexion — Coke, Pawson, Benson, 
Moore, Clarke, Reece, and others usually making her house 
their home. Till her eightieth year she was actively engaged 
in works of charity and benevolence. Her last letter, her last 
interview with her family, and the last entry in her journal, all 
tell of her Saviour's indwelling presence, whilst her dying words, 
uttered with brightened eye, uplifted hand, but tremulous voice, 
were — 

' ' There is my house and portion fair ; 
My treasure and my heart are there. 
And my abiding home ; " 

after which the venerable saint departed " to be with Christ." 

Service for God early in youth is usually followed by service 
for God during life. Maximilian Wilson gave his heart to 
God and the service of Methodism at the age of seventeen, 
and for sixty years and more he devoted his best energies in 
promoting its interests. During forty-five years he discharged 
the duties of the Wesleyan ministry, and as a supernumerary 
went about doing good. As the end drew nigh, his conversation 
was about things above. Frequently he was heard to say, 



Hy. 69.] 



and its Associations. 



61 



" Bless the Lord ! I am going home ; I shall soon be there. I 
live on the border of both worlds, and have fellowship with my 
departed friends in heaven." Then he would repeat the two 
closing verses of the Pilgrim's Hymn, commencing — 

" There is my house and portion fair," &c. 

and when the end came, Christ smiled his peaceful spirit away 
to His own paradise, " where all the ship's company meet." 

A somewhat novel adaptation of this favourite stanza was 
made by John G. Stevenson, of Chesterfield, a Methodist for half 
a century, whose wife, and six of his children had preceded him 
to heaven. The cares and anxieties of more than three- score 
years and ten had brought exhausted nature to the end of its 
pilgrimage, and, without any disease, the good man was patiently 
waiting the summons to depart, when, visited by the writer, he 
was found in an ecstasy of joy, ascribing all his happiness to 
Christ and His finished work ; and then, as though holding 
communion with the redeemed spirits of his own family, he 
repeated, with surprising frequency — 

" For me my wife and children stay, 
And angels beckon me away, 
And Jesus bids me come." 

Hymn 69. — " Thou, Lord, on whom I still depend." — Revelation 
ii. 10-12. — Tune, Marienburn, 1761. 

This hymn is formed of three of Charles Wesley 7 s " Short 
Scripture Hymns," 1762, vol. ii., Nos. 831-833. One verse of 
the original is altered, and other verses are omitted. 

There is a calm dignity in the manner in which the Christian 
is represented as going to meet death — 

" My soul the second death defies, 
And reigns eternal in the skies." 

William Roach was one amongst the first Methodists in 
Shields, and had the privilege of hearing Mr Wesley preach 
in that locality. During a long life he was diligent in business, 
fervent in spirit, serving the Lord. On the Sunday previous to 
his death, exhausted nature having run its course, he desired 
his family to sing the hymn commencing — 

" Thou, Lord, on whom I still depend," &c 
It had often been sung by and for him before, but on this 



62 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 70, 



occasion he thoroughly entered into the sentiment of this fine 
hymn ; and his joyous countenance reflected the gratitude his 
tongue could not express. He died in the full assurance of a 
blessed immortality. 

The maxim, " Religion in youth, and religion for life/ 5 was 
verified in the case of Mrs Hannah Swindells, of Macclesfield. 
She strove to have every thought, word, and act conformed to 
the will of God. From a child she was a careful student of the 
Word, and a great admirer of Wesleyan poetry. During her 
last illness she was repeating almost continually verses of Scrip- 
ture and hymns. Seated in her chair, shortly before her death, 
absorbed in thought, and adjusting her spiritual armour for the 
last conflict, she rose rather suddenly, and advancing towards 
the bed, she said, as she crossed the room — 
" Jesus, in Thy great Name I go 

To conquer death, my final foe ! 

And when I quit this cumbrous clay, 

And soar on angels' wings away, 

My soul the second death defies, 

And reigns eternal in the skies." 

Then laying herself on the bed, like a warrior who had con- 
quered, she instantly breathed out her soul into the hands of God. 

HYMN 70. — "I long to behold Him array'd." — Isaiah xxxiii. 
17, 23, 24. — Tune, Thou Shepherd of Israel, 1761. 

This hymn is made up of two of Charles Wesley's "Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," 1762, based on Isa. xxxiii. 17, 23. 24, of which pas- 
sage it is a glowing and dignified paraphrase and amplification. 

There is much grandeur in the expectant faith indicated 
throughout the hymn, and a glorious climax in 
" My fulness of rapture I find, 

My heaven ef heavens, in Thee." 
Thus the author is represented as falling into, and reposing 
solely in, the arms of Jesus. The hymn is full of beauty. 

The greater part of a life of threescore years and ten was 
spent by Mrs Atkinson, of Leeds, in the service of God and 
Methodism. The confidence of her faith and hope, at the end 
of her pilgrimage, often found expression in the words — 
" I long to behold Him array'd 

With glory and light from above," &c. 
She peacefully breathed out her soul to God. 



Hy. 71.] 



and its Associations. 



63 



Good Mrs Henley, wife of the Rev. W. Henley, during a long 
and severe illness, preserved her confidence in God unshaken. 
Just before she breathed her last, she repeated her favourite 
verse — 

" I long to behold Him array'd, " &c. 

Her departure was so peaceful, she seemed only to have fallen 
asleep. 

At the age of seventy-two, George Cowley, a class-leader of 
Nottingham, was enabled to say, on his approach to the better 
world, " I owe so much to the Lord, that I am overwhelmed 
with gratitude. " To the question, " Are you on the Rock ? n he 
said, " Oh yes ; and I shall soon meet Jesus in heaven. 

" I long to behold Him array'd 

With glory and light from above, 
The King in His beauty display'd, 
His beauty of holiest love. " 

With these words on his lips, he fell asleep in Jesus. 

A long course of unpretending but consistent piety marked 
the life of Bridget Daniell, wife of the Rev. Mark Daniell. Find- 
ing the end drawing nigh, she desired that nothing might be 
said of her if a funeral sermon was preached, adding, " I have 
been an unprofitable servant, but God accepts my imperfect ser- 
vice through the atonement of the blessed Jesus ; and" — her 
face becoming radiant with joy — 

" With Him I on Zion shall stand, 
For Jesus hath spoken the word." 

In this spirit of calm resignation, she entered paradise. 

HYMN 71.—" Leader of faithful souls, and Guide."— The 
Traveller. — Tune, 112th Psalm, 1761. 

This forms one of Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns," 
1747, but two verses of the original are omitted. 

A godly life dispels the fear of death. Mrs Catherine Pratt, 
wife of the Rev. J. C. Pratt, died at Pettigo, very happy, having 
experienced the regenerating power of the Holy Ghost for many 
years. At the end of her pilgrimage, she testified of her confi- 
dence in God by exclaiming, " Victory, through the blood of the 
Lamb ! n adding the verse commencing — 

" Strangers and pilgrims here below," &c. 



6 4 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 73. 



John Jottie began to serve God in early youth, and for nearly 
fifty years he was a bright ornament of the Methodist society at 
Walferden, near Colne. He was brought to a knowledge of the 
truth in his eighth year, under a sermon preached by Mr Wes- 
ley at Southfield, who said in his sermon, " The best of us have 
no grace to spare." These words carried conviction to his heart, 
and he sought grace for himself, and found that which kept him 
in perfect peace for nearly fourscore years. On the Thursday 
before he died, while suffering severely, he was comforted by re- 
peating the fourth verse of the " Traveller's Hymn " — 

" Patient the appointed race to run, 

This weary world we cast behind ; 
From strength to strength we travel on, 

The new Jerusalem to find : 
Our labour this, our only aim, 
To find the New Jerusalem." 

Here his strength failed him ; he lingered on a little longer, 
triumphing in faith, till, on the Sunday afternoon, he exchanged 
the earthly for the heavenly Sabbath. 

Hymn 72.- — " Saviour, on me the grace bestow." — Him that 
overco?neth, &c. (Rev. iii. 12). — Tune, 112th Psalm, 1761. 
Forms one of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii., 1762. 

Hymn 73. — "Away with our sorrow and fear." — A Funeral 
Hy7nn. — Tune, Sion, 1761. 

One of Charles Wesley's " Funeral Hymns," 1744. The im- 
agery used by the poet is taken from that great city, the holy 
Jerusalem, and should be read in conjunction with St John's 
description in Rev. xxi. It will be seen, on comparison, that 
the " divine " apostle and the Methodist poet alike drew their 
inspiration from heaven. 

Passing through the discipline suitable for a minister's wife, 
Martha Smith joined the fellowship of God's people at the age 
of thirteen, became a Sunday-school teacher, and laid herself 
out for active service in the Lord's vineyard. As the wife of the 
Rev. James Smith, and sister of the Rev. Edward Light wood, 
her life seemed to be bound up with the prosperity of the cause 
of God. When illness deprived her of the privileges of the sane- 



Hy. 73.] 



and its Associations, 



65 



tuary, she was refreshed by meditations on the Word of God, 
and especially by repeating the lines — 

" Away with our sorrow and fear, 

"We soon shall recover our home ; 
The city of saints shall appear, 
The day of eternity come, " &c. 

When she came to the verse commencing — 

" By faith we already behold 

That lovely Jerusalem here," &c., 

she dwelt with peculiar emphasis on some of the lines, as realis- 
ing to her mind the presence of the "city of jasper and gold" 
already on earth. Her last words were, " He is precious ! " 

" A good name is better than great riches." The father of 
Robert Wood, Wesleyan minister, was James Wood, Wesleyan 
minister, who, to commemorate his eightieth birthday, had a de- 
lightful party at the Conference (1831), consisting, among others, 
of Messrs Bunting, Newton, Watson, Lessey, James, Hannah, 
Morley, and Robert Wood. To add to the honour, the vener- 
able man preached before the Conference a sermon on the occa- 
sion, full of excellent, affectionate, and faithful counsels. Robert 
Wood, the estimable son of this venerable sire, was admitted a 
member of the legal hundred of the Wesleyan Conference at the 
same time (1831), "being the youngest minister hitherto so 
honoured." His age was forty-four. Divine Providence, how- 
ever, cut short his work in righteousness ; he lived but little 
more than two-thirds the years of his father. During his last 
illness, which was one of severe suffering and patient endurance, 
he showed by the tenor of his conversation, the sweetness of his 
disposition, and his choice of lessons and hymns to be read to 
him, that he desired to lead the members of his family to concur 
in the conclusion of the apostle Paul, " To depart and be with 
Christ is far better." Allusion having been made to the first 
Great Exhibition in Hyde Park, opened during the previous 
week, May 185 1, in which the sufferer evinced much interest, 
a hope was expressed that he might so far recover as to be able 
to visit that " fairy land." He . shook his head, and said, " No ; 
I shall never see the Crystal Palace : but reach the Hymn-book, 
and read the seventy-third hymn, and you will find that I shall 
not lose much." The hymn was read to him, and the third 
verse especially attracted attention : — 

E 



66 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 74. 



" By faith we already behold 
That lovely Jerusalem here ; 
Her walls are of jasper and gold, 

As crystal her buildings are clear/' &c. 

He survived but a short time, but long enough to testify that 
his hope for the future was based on the Rock of Ages. Slowly 
the light of a bright summer's morning in June broke into the 
chamber of death, and a dawn yet far more glorious burst upon 
the released spirit. 

HYMN 74. — " We know, by faith we know/' — A Funeral Hymn. 
-—Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Another of Charles Wesley's " Funeral Hymns/' 1744. The 
second verse of the original is omitted. Dr Watts has a hymn 
(No. no, book i.) very similar to this of Mr Wesley's. 

Mr John Dyson Fernley was a child of many prayers, and 
in early life gave his heart to the Lord. After he was born of 
God, and had become a new creature, he became eminently a 
spiritually-minded man. On the Sabbath before he closed his 
brief earthly career— limited to thirty years — he addressed the 
children in the Tiviotdale Sunday-school, Stockport, on the sub- 
ject of sudden death, and the need of constant preparation. 
Many were much affected, and it is in touching accordance with 
the whole proceeding that at the close of the service he gave out 
the seventy-fourth hymn : — 

" We know, by faith we know, 

If this vile house of clay, 
This tabernacle, sink below 

In ruinous decay ; 
We have a house above, 

Not made with mortal hands ; 
And firm, as our Redeemer's love, 

That heavenly fabric stands." 

On the following Sabbath-day apoplexy terminated his useful 
and happy life. 

A godly life is the best test of a real conversion. Thomas 
Pearson, of Over-Darwen, for a long period efficiently sustained 
the offices, in Methodism, of leader, local preacher, and steward. 
His last affliction was painful, but submissively borne. Shortly 
before his death he asked one of his daughters to pray for the 



Hy. 75.] 



and its Associations. 



67 



descent of the Holy Ghost upon him. When she ceased, he 
began to repeat — 

" ' 1 know, by faith I know, 

If this vile house of clay,' " &c, 

but before he had finished the verse he had fallen asleep in 
Jesus. 

Robert Chapman retained his fellowship with the Methodists 
of Wolsingham fifty-six years, and for thirty years was a leader. 
His religious experience was clear through life, and a day or 
two before his death, pointing upwards, he said — 

" 1 I have a house above, Not made with mortal hands,' " &c, 

with which he closed a life of consistent piety, by a peaceful and 
happy death. 

Medical skill and scientific knowledge of the power of medi- 
cine cannot always save their possessor from human suffering. 
The late James Hunter, Esq. of Islington, was called to endure 
thirty-eight weeks of weariness and pain, being unable to lie 
down either by night or day, yet he murmured not for these 
heavy trials. Within a few days of his death he said, " The 
Lord is releasing me very gently. I shall soon be free from all 
suffering. Glory ! glory !" The last time he was able to speak, 
he repeated with emphasis the lines in the seventy-fourth hymn — 

" ' For this in faith we call, For this we weep and pray : 
O might the tabernacle fall, O might we 'scape away ! 
Full of immortal hope, We urge the restless strife, 
And hasten to be swallow'd up Of everlasting life.' " 

Hymn 75. — "Lift your eyes of faith, and see." — The Sacrament 
a Pledge of Heaven. — Tune, Love-feast, 1761. 

This forms No. 105 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper," 1745. 

Another instance of early dedication to God we may give 
from the life of Charlotte Brown, of Bedminster, Bristol, who 
passed some years in weakness and suffering, during which the 
consolations of religion were her chief joy. Shortly before her 
departure, she said to a friend, speaking of Jesus, " I shall see 
His face — I shall drink from the rivers of His grace ; and these 
thoughts now create constant joys." Her last words were part 
of the seventy-fifth hymn — 



68 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 76. 



" * Palms they carry in their hands, 
Crowns of glory on their heads.' 

There is a crown for me, and I shall shortly wear it. I can 
sing no more here ; but in heaven, with my palm of victory, I 
will sing as loud as any angel there." 

Hymn 76.— "What are these array'd in white?" — The Sacrament 
a Pledge of Heaven, — Tune, Arne's, 1761. 

The original forms No. 106 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on 
the Lord's Supper," 1745. 

Death sometimes makes strange inroads in families. A sin- 
gular instance occurred in 1824 in Flamborough. The wives of 
two brothers died within a few days of each other. Both were 
earnest, godly women, and both were connected with Methodism 
in that town during the greater part of their lives. Both died 
enjoying the clear witness of their acceptance with God, and a 
sure hope of heaven. Elizabeth Lamplough, the elder of the 
two sisters by two years, when she appeared to be on the ex- 
treme verge of mortality, and the realities of the eternal world 
were opening to her view, summoned all her remaining strength 
and exclaimed — 

" 'What are these array'd in white, 

Brighter than the noon-day sun?* " 

With this inquiry upon her lips, she died. 

In peaceful resignation to the divine will, and in sure con- 
fidence of her acceptance with God, Sarah Holden, of Brixton, 
always delicate of constitution, made preparation for the eternity 
which she was awaiting. In calm resignation to the divine will 
she committed her family and herself to the disposal of her 
heavenly Father. Just before her departure, when failing 
strength prevented singing or reading, she opened her Hymn- 
book, and pointed to the verse commencing — 

" What are these array'd in white," &c., 

as indicative of her assurance of everlasting happiness, and then 
entered into rest. 

Sarah, the daughter of the Rev. John Dewhurst, was awakened 
to a sense of her sinful state at the age of fourteen, under the 
ministry of the Rev. John Bowers. Always delicate in body, 
yet she was strong in faith, giving glory to God. The know- 



Hy. 78.] 



and its Associations, 



69 



ledge that her life was fast ebbing out, only quickened hei desire 
to depart and be with Christ. Some of her last words were part 
of the seventy-sixth hymn — 

A " These are they that bore the cross, 
Nobly for their Master stood," &c. 
In meek submission to the divine will her released happy spirit 
entered paradise. 

Methodism at Porte-de-Grave, Newfoundland, was founded 
chiefly by the labours of Mr George Ley, a local preacher. 
Amongst the early converts there were James and Mary Butler, 
whose daughter, Virtue, afterwards became the wife of the son 
of George Ley. She was brought to Christ under the ministry 
of the Rev. James Hickson, and during the rest of her life testi- 
fied to the power of divine grace in renewing her heart Shortly 
before her death, whilst prostrate by illness, her mind was in 
distress through severe temptation. She was much com- 
forted by a visit from her minister, but the darkness was not 
dispelled. She wrestled with God in her spirit, inwardly, for a 
renewal of the divine favour, when she added, " Yes, I will, I 
can rejoice in Thee, my Saviour." The spell was broken, and 
with a glowing heart, whilst lying quietly in bed, she began to 
sing— 

" ' Out of great distress they came, 

Wash'd their robes by faith below, 
In the blood of yonder Lamb, 
Blood that washes white as snow,' ? &c, 

In that holy calm she remained to the end, closing her career 
with a faint whisper, " Come, Lord Jesus." 

HYMN 77.—" The Church in her militant state.'—" The Spirit 
and the bride say, Conie" &c. (Rev. xxii. 17). — Tune, 
Funeral, 1761. 

The original forms No. 863 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," 1762, vol. ii. Two words are altered in the second 
verse. 

Hymn 78.— " The thirsty are called to their Lord."— "And let 
him that is athirst cotne" (Rev. xxii. 17). — Tune, Funeral 
1761. 

It forms No. 865 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. ii., 1762. 



7o 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 8i. 



Hymn 79. — "A fountain of Life and of Grace." — Whosoever 
will may come" &c. (Rev. xxii. 17). — Tune, Sion, 1761. 
Forms No. 866 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture Hymns" 
vol. ii., 1762. James Montgomery has a hymn very similar to 
these three in language and sentiment. 

Hymn 80. — " Terrible thought ! shall I alone." — A thought on 
hell. For Children. — Tune, Wenvo, 1761. 

This forms No. 60 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children," 
1763, where it has ten verses, four of which are omitted. This 
commences the sixth section in the Hymn-book, with the title, 
" Describing Hell." The peculiar idea of this hymn is the utter 
loneliness of each person when appearing in the presence of 
God. The same thought is also expressed in these lines by Dr 
Young — 

" Thy wretched self alone 
Cast on the left of all whom thou hast known, 
How would it wound ! " 

Mr Bunting suggests the tune " Bolton " or " St Mary's " for 
this hymn. 

Hymn 81. — " Father of omnipresent grace ! " — For Families. — 
Tune, Welsh, 1761. 

In Charles Wesley's u Hymns for Families," No. 13, the 
original will be found : the last line is changed from " Not 
a hoof," to " Not a soul," &c. 

God has ways of working to human minds unknown. John 
Langley, of Whitstable, made a rash vow, which he kept till he 
was forty-five, that he would never enter a Methodist chapel. 
Convictions for sin set in so strongly at that period of his life, 
that his friends attributed the disquietude of his mind to insanity. 
A judicious and pious friend prevailed on him to attend a 
Methodist service at Canterbury. By this means he found out 
the evil of his rash vow, began to meet in class, found pardon 
and peace, and introduced Methodism into Whitstable by open- 
ing his own house, forming a society, becoming the leader of 
the first members there, and afterwards using his talent as an 
exhorter. The close of his life was sudden. The local preacher 
appointed for Whitstable had failed to keep his appointment, 



Hy. 84.] 



and its Associations. 



71 



and in the afternoon of that Sunday Mr Langley read to the 
people Mr Wesley's sermon on Romans v. 15. The intervening 
time before the evening service he spent in reading the Scrip- 
tures, and Dr Adam Clarke's Commentary thereon. Intending 
to read another of Mr Wesley's sermons in the evening, he 
took his place, and selected his first hymn, commencing — 

" Father of omnipresent grace," &c. 
In the act of rising to open the service, he fell forward, his 
friends hastened to his assistance, but his redeemed spirit had 
fled! 

Hymn 82. — " Shepherd of souls, with pitying eye." — For the 
Outcasts of Israel — Tune, Athlone, 1781. 

This forms No. 31 of Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns," 
1747. Some of its lines exhibit a dark picture of the heathenism 
in Christian England. 

Hymn 83, — " Thou Son of God, v/hose flaming eyes." — For the 
Evening. — Tune, Brooks, 1761. 

The original forms No. 25 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for a 
Family," 1767, where it is printed as four eight-line stanzas. 
The third line in verse four is altered from, " And fill his care- 
less heart with grief." In the fifth verse " leper" is changed to 
" sleeper." 

Hymn 84. — "Come, O thou all-victorious Lord." — Written 
before Preaching at Portland. — Tune, Leeds, 1761. 

This interesting hymn will be found in Charles Wesley's 
" Hymns and Sacred Poems," vol. i., 1749, where it is No. 201. 
It was written during the author's visit to Portland in June 
1 746 ; and some pleasing particulars relating to the circum- 
stances which caused the hymn to be written will be found in 
the author's Journal under the date given, as also in the 
Wesley an Magazine for May 1869. The second line of verse 
six is altered from — " And make us feel our load," and in the 
fourth line, "In Thine" is changed to "In the." The chief 
occupation of the residents in the Isle of Portland is that of 
quarrymen, and the hymn was written especially to catch their 
attention. In the first verse especially this is manifest — 
" Strike with the hammer of Thy word, 
And break these hearts of stone !" 



72 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 92. 



Hymn 85. — " Spirit of Faith, come down." — For Whitsunday. — 
Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 
The original is No. 27 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns of Petition 
and Thanksgiving for the Promise of the Father," 1746, one 
verse of which is omitted. The author's favourite expression in 
the third verse, "My dear atoning" is changed to "The all- 
atoning." 

Hymn 86. — "Sinners, your hearts lift up." — A Hymn for the 
Day of Pentecost. — Tune, Irene, 1761. 

Was published first by Charles Wesley in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1742. 

Hymn 87. — " Come, Holy Ghost, our hearts inspire 

„ 88. — " Father of all, in whom alone." 
Before Reading the Scriptures. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

These two much admired compositions are found in Charles 
Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740. Another hymn 
designed for the same purpose is No. 746 in the supplement, 
written by Miss Steele, commencing, " Father of mercies," &c. 

Hymn 89. — " Inspirer of the ancient Seers." — "All Scripture is 
given by inspiration of God " &c. — Tune, Frankfort, 1761. 

This forms No. 664 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, vol. ii., and is based on 2 Timothy iii. 16. The 
second verse of the original is omitted. 

Hymn 90.*—" Thus saith the Lord of earth and heaven."— The 

forty-fourth chapter of Isaiah. 

This forms No. 3 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," vol. i., 1 749, and is a lengthened paraphrase of Isaiah xliv. 
The original has seventeen stanzas of four lines, the first nine of 
which are omitted. This hymn was added to the collection 
after Mr Wesley's death, which is indicated by the asterisk. 

Hymn 91. — " Long have I seem'd to serve thee, Lord 
„ 92. — " Still for Thy loving-kindness, Lord." 
The Means of Grace. — Tune, 91, Fetter Lane ; 92, Wednes- 
bury, 1 76 1. 

These two hymns appear as one by Charles Wesley in " Hymns 



Hy. 94.] and its Associations. 



73 



and Sacred Poems," 1740, where it extends to twenty-three 
verses. It was written during the prevalence of the disputes 
between the Wesley s and the Moravians, some of the latter 
having accepted Antinomian doctrines, whilst some of Mr 
Wesley's adherents unduly exalted the means of grace. This 
hymn commences the first section of the second part of the 
collection, with the title, " Describing Formal Religion.'' 

Few persons connected with Methodism were more faithful 
in their service than good old Thomas Cordeux, at the book- 
room store in Paternoster Row. His wife, Hannah Cordeux, 
feared the Lord from her youth, and in her life testified to the 
possession of the graces of the Spirit — love, joy, peace, long- 
suffering, gentleness, goodness, meekness. By these graces she 
was distinguished. She suffered much from asthma, but she 
murmured not. Several times during her last days on earth 
she repeated the eighth verse of hymn 92 — 

" I trust in Him, who stands between 
The Father's wrath and me : 
Jesus, Thou great eternal Mean, 
I look for all from thee ! " 

In this spirit she closed her earthly career. 

Hymn 93.— "My gracious, loving Lord."-— The Backslider — 
Tune, Brentford, 1761. 

The original is on page 63 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1 742. It commences thus — " Ah ! my dear loving 
Lord ; " and throughout the hymn the alterations are consider- 
able, and generally improvements. The design of this hymn, 
and also of No. 94, is to recommend inward and experimental 
godliness, which was then too generally supplanted by a merely 
outward and formal observance of religion, a fatal rock on 
which many have struck and made shipwreck of faith. Mr 
Bunting suggests that line two of verse 6, should be altered to 
" I seem'd in human sight." 

Hymn 94.—" The men who slight Thy faithful word."—" The 

Temple of the Lord are we" &c. (Jer. vii. 4) Tune, St 

Paul's, 1 76 1. 

Forms No. 1185 of Charles Wesley's "Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, and is founded on Jeremiah vii. 4. It is a strong 



74 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 95. 



admonition to formalists. The second verse in the original is 
omitted. The reason may be obvious when we quote four lines — 

" The church — they from their pale expel 
Whom Thou hast here forgiven ; 
And all the synagogue of hell 
Are the sole heirs of heaven! " 

A withering exposure this of the condition of the Church of 
England one hundred years ago ! 

Hymn 95. — "Author of faith, eternal Word." — Faith, the sub- 
stance of things hoped for, — TUNE, Anglesea, 1761. 

The original of this fine composition, by Charles Wesley, 
was first printed in " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1740, where 
it extends to no less than eighty-eight stanzas, and is entitled, 
" The Life of Faith Exemplified" (Rom. x.), being a lucid 
paraphrase and amplification of that chapter. 

Every word of this hymn is employed to elicit revealed truth ; 
it is written in language at once expressive and terse. In the 
Wesley an Magazine for 1839, page 381, there is a very able 
critique of this noble composition. The hymn No. 95 is a mere 
fragment of the whole, and forms here the first of a new section, 
under the title, " Describing Inward Religion." 

Chequered scenes and severe trials have been the portion of 
many of the Lord's people. John Harper, in early life, entered 
the king's service on board a transport ship. It soon fell to 
his lot to suffer many privations, and finally shipwreck and 
imprisonment. Taken to France as a prisoner of war, he 
found more than a thousand of his countrymen in the Givet 
prison, and amongst them some from Shields, his native place, 
and some who were Methodists. Awakened to a sense of his 
lost condition as a sinner at the time of his peril in the sea, he 
gladly accepted the invitation of those few devout men in prison 
to unite with them in prayer ; and here he saw the greatness of 
his transgression, and found acceptance with God by faith in 
Jesus Christ. That blessed sense of the divine favour he then 
obtained, he retained during the rest of his life. A society was 
formed in the prison, and all the ordinances of Methodism were 
observed as far as possible, though with only the same liberty 
to the person as the captive Jews had in Babylon. Quarterly 
tickets were regularly issued, neatly written with the pen, and 



II Y. 96.] and its Associations. 75 



doubtless the Scripture passage which each contained was often 
a source of comfort to those in bondage. In 18 14, when the 
allied sovereigns entered Paris, the prison doors throughout 
France were opened, and every man went out free. Mr Harper 
returned to Shields, became a schoolmaster, joined the Meth- 
odists, and continued faithful in the Lord's service. His last 
illness continued for more than a year, during which time his 
spirit was ripening for eternity. A little before his death he 
repeated a verse of the 95th hymn — 

" To him that in Thy name believes 
Eternal life with Thee is given ; 
Into himself he all receives, 

Pardon, and holiness, and heaven." 
This verse correctly described his dying experience. As he 
neared the port, his testimony became yet more clear, that 
Christ was all and in all. 

The gaieties of youth and the pleasures of the world were 
cheerfully resigned at the age of twenty by Ann Caudler, of 
Colchester, when the Spirit of God convinced her of sin. In the 
fellowship of the Lord's people for two years she found more 
real delight than she did in the previous twenty years of world- 
liness. When overtaken by sickness and suffering, her calmness 
and resignation testified to the preparation of her heart. A few 
hours before her death her father read some verses of hymns to 
her, and to those she replied by repeating others. The last she 
was able to repeat was the closing verse of the 95th hymn — 
" Faith lends its realising light, 

The clouds disperse, the shadows fly ; 
The Invisible appears in sight, 
And God is seen by mortal eye." 
To the inquiry, did she feel the truths contained in these words, 
she said, " Oh yes ; frequently when I cannot speak." Shortly 
afterwards she entered into rest. 

Hymn 96. — 6i How can a sinner know." — The Marks of Faith. 
— Tune, Brentford, 1761. 

This forms a combination of a short and common metre hymn 
by Charles Wesley, in his " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 161, sixteen lines of which are omitted. By the judi- 
cious alteration of John Wesley, it is made into a uniform short 
metre. 



7 6 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 97. 



The extent of the blessings which flow from early consecration 
to God we shall know only in eternity. At the early age of 
twelve years William Barton was under deep religious convic- 
tions, and he desired permission of his parents to meet in class. 
It was a wise decision which consented to the boy's choice. 
Through the kind instructions of his class-leader, he was soon 
enabled to realise a sense of pardoned sin. It was on a Sabbath 
evening, in a prayer-meeting which followed the preaching of the 
word, that he found peace with God. The minister had given 
out the first verse of hymn 96— 

" How can a sinner know 

His sins on earth forgiven ?" &c. 

The whole of the verse having been sung, the words fixed the 
attention of the anxious youth, and while singing the second 
verse — 

" We who in Christ believe 
That He for us hath died, 
We all His unknown peace receive, 
And feel His blood applied," &c., 

he was enabled to commit himself to the Lord Jesus as his 
Saviour, and felt the peace which passeth understanding. For 
thirty years he was greatly owned of God as a Wesleyan minis- 
ter, and died saying, " Happy ! I am resting on Christ." 

Hymn 97.*— "Thou great mysterious God unknown." — Seeking 
Redemption. 

This forms No. 19 of Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns," 
1747. Two verses are omitted. It is not found in any edition 
of the Hymn-book previous to the year 1800. 

Mary Wood, of Maltby, near Rotherham, from childhood was 
under the strivings of the Holy Spirit, but had reached woman- 
hood before she fully gave her heart to the Lord. Nearly forty- 
five years she was in fellowship with the Methodist society, and 
was untiring in her efforts to extend the religion which had made 
her peaceful and happy. She never experienced the rapture ot 
spiritual enjoyment which some professed ; this sometimes 
discouraged her, but often she found comfort in repeating the 
first verse of hymn 97, which commences thus : — 



Hy. ioi.] 



and its Associations. 



77 



" Thou great mysterious God unknown, 
Whose love hath gently led me on, 
Even from my infant days," &c. 

To her to live was Christ, but to die was gain. 

Hymn 98. — " Upright, both in heart and will." — " God hath made 
man upright? &c. (Eccles. vii. 29). — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

This forms No. 920 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, vol. i. There is much force and meaning con- 
veyed in the couplet — 

" In ten thousand objects sought 
The bliss we lost in one." 

Hymn 99. — " Father of lights, from whom proceeds."— A 
Prayer under Convictions. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley, and printed in u Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1739. The last three verses of the original are 
omitted. It is worthy of note here, that one of the omitted 
verses is one of three, all by the same author, which are printed 
in Mr Toplady's works, edition 1837, as though they were 
written by Toplady. Such an error should not be passed with- 
out correction. 

Hymn 100. — a Jesus, my Advocate above." — Try me, O God, and 
seek the ground of my heart — Tune, Smith's, 1781. 

This is Charles Wesley's paraphrase of the Prayer-book ver- 
sion of Psalm cxxxix. 23, and is found in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1739, P a £ e 97- The original has five stanzas ; the fourth 
is omitted. The first line in the original reads thus : — " Jesus ! 
my great High Priest above," which John Wesley has altered to 
" Advocate" above. A change is also made in the last line. 

Hymn ioi. — " Saviour, Prince of Israel's race." — A Penitential 
Hymn. — Tune, Dedication, 1781. 

This forms No. 33 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," vol. i., 1749. The original has ten verses, only half of 
which are here given. In the omitted portion reference is made 
to severe mental suffering and penitence, which lead to the 
opinion that it was written before the author's conversion in 
1738. The hymn is full of fine feeling and power. Mr Bunting 



73 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. ioi. 



suggests that line six, verse 2, should read thus : — " Made Thee 
shed Thy precious blood." 

There are but few remaining links to connect the period of 
John Wesley's Methodists and those of the present day. Mrs 
Thomas Gabriel, late of Brixton Hill, was present at the City 
Road Chapel, London, at the last covenant service conducted 
there by Mr Wesley, and she was present also at his funeral. 
In early life she was called to give her heart to the Saviour, and 
joined the Methodist Society, maintaining her connexion with 
the body for more than threescore years. In her extreme feeble- 
ness the Lord dealt graciously with His aged disciple, whom He 
called gradually and tenderly from earth to heaven. She was 
at times buffeted by the adversary, and would always repel his 
assaults by quoting the last verse of hymn 101 : — 

M O remember me for good, 

Passing through the mortal vale ; 
Show me the atoning blood, 

When my strength and spirit fail; 
Give my gasping soul to see 
Jesus crucified for me ! " 

In her ninety-second year she entered into rest, telling her 
daughters, " I love you all ; but I love Jesus better, and I am 
going to Him." 

In very early life Frances Lewis obtained the pardon of sin, 
and united herself to the Methodists in 1796, having been con- 
verted during a revival in the Spitalfields circuit. She lived a 
consistent godly life ; and during her last illness, just before 
her departure to heaven, she repeated, as expressive of her 
experience, the verse commencing — 

" O remember me for good," &c. 

She died resting on the atonement of Christ. 

As a little boy, William Lishman wrote a brief prayer to aid 
his devotions, in which he asked God to give him knowledge, 
wisdom, and grace. His prayer was answered. Drawn gently 
by the Spirit's influence, he joined the Methodists in 1816, and 
was an honoured and attached member to the end of his days. 
He formed a new society at Coxhoe, and greatly aided the work 
in the neighbourhood of Gateshead. During a painful illness 
he found comfort in prayer, and amongst his last utterances he 
repeated — 



Hy. 105.] 



and its Associations, 



79 



" O remember me for good, 

Passing through the mortal vale." 

The earnestness with which he repeated these lines deeply 
impressed all present To one who came thirty miles to see 
him, he said, " Happy ! oh yes, happy ! " And so passed to his 
heavenly home. 

Hymn 102. — " O that I could repent." — For one Fallen from 
Grace. — Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Forms No. 78 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," vol. i., 1749. The original has four verses, the third 
and fourth being omitted. 

Hymn 103. — " O that I could revere."—/^ one Fallen from 
Grace. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

This forms No. 82 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," vol. i., 1749. The second verse of the original is left 
out. "Imprudent" in the second verse is changed to "im- 
pending." 

This striking figure of speech is taken from the story of 
Damocles, as related by Cicero of Dionysius, king of Italy, and 
one of his flatterers, B.C. 368. By command of the king, 
Damocles assumed the sovereignty, and was dazzled by the 
splendour and luxury of royalty, until he perceived a sword sus- 
pended over his head by a single horse-hair. This marred his 
pleasures, and he relinquished his ambitious assumptions. 
The Rev. Joseph Stennett employs the same figure thus : — 

" Who laughs at sin, laughs at his Maker's frowns, — 
Laughs at the sword of vengeance o'er his head." 

Hymn 104. — " O for that tenderness of heart." — The Tender 
Heart, &c. — Tune, Mitcham, 1781. 

The original forms 609 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, founded on 2 Kings xxii. 19-30. 

Hymn 105. — " O that I could repent." — For one Fallen from 
Grace, — Tune, Brentford, 1761. 

Forms No. 84 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," vol. i., 1749. The third and fourth verses of the original 
are omitted. 



8o 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 109. 



Hymn 106. — " Jesu, let Thy pitying eye.'* — For one Fallen from 
Grace.-— Tune, Calvary, 1761. 

Forms No. 64 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 
vol. i., 1749. The original has twelve verses. The third, fourth, 
ninth, and tenth are omitted. 

The fall, repentance, and recovery of the apostle Peter are 
related by the poet with much feeling and energy. In the 
original, the appealing prayer is eleven times offered : — " Turn, 
and look upon me, Lord, and break my heart of stone." Perse- 
vering prayer is rewarded : the last refrain includes in its peti- 
tion the sufferings, love, and compassion of the Saviour. 

" O my bleeding, loving Lord, 

Thou break'st my heart of stone." 

Hymn 107.*—" The Spirit of the Lord our God."— The Sixty- 
first Chapter of Isaiah. 

This forms No. 5 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," vol. L, 1749. The original is in two parts, of twenty- 
two and eighteen verses respectively. Only six verses from the 
first part are chosen, and several alterations are made in them. 
It is altered from the first to the third person. The asterisk 
affixed indicates that this hymn was added to the collection 
after Mr W esley's death. Mr Bunting suggests that line four, 
verse six, should read, " And unto full perfection grow," with 
the note, " Lame, bad ending of a very fine hymn." 

Hymn 108. — " Enslaved to sense, to pleasure prone." — Grace 
before Meat. — Tune, Wednesbury, 1761. 

Forms one of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1 739, page 35. This hymn commences a new section, under 
the title, " For Mourners Convinced of Sin." Mr Bunting 
changes " actions " to " passions," in verse seven. 

Hymn 109. — "Wretched, helpless, and distrest." — Wretched, 
and Mise?'able, and Poor, and Blind, and Naked. — TUNE, 
Kingswood, 1 761. 

This forms one of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1742, page 43. The second verse of the original is 
omitted. 



Hy. hi.] and its Associations. 



81 



Hymn iio. — "Jesus, Friend of sinners, hear." — A Prayer for 
Restoring Grace. — TUNE, Kingswood, 1761. 

Taken from Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 
1742, page 67. Mr Bunting suggests changing in verse five, 
"My struggling spirit" to "My struggling soul set free;" and 
line two, verse six, to read, " This only I require." 

The stupendous magnitude of sin which is indicated in the 
third verse, is an idea which seems to have been borrowed from 
Mason's " Songs of Praise," 1682 : — 

" My sins have reach' d up to the skies ; 

But mercy these exceeds : 
God's mercy is " above the heavens, — 

Above my simple deeds." 
My sins are many, like the stars, 

Or sand upon the shore ; 
But yet the mercies of my God 

Are infinitely more. 
My sins in bigness do arise 

Like mountains great and tall ; 
But mercy is above the skies," &c. 

In verse six there is an idea which is very characteristic of 
Charles Wesley's early poetry, " Take the power of sin away;" 
a blessing never more wanted by professing Christians than 
now. 

Hymn i i i *— " Thus saith the Lord ! Who seek the Lamb."— 
Fifty -first Chapter of Isaiah. 

This hymn forms No. 4 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," vol. i., 1749. It is a composition in four parts, 
extending to sixty-two stanzas. The first commences thus : — 

" Hearken to me, who seek the Lamb, 
Who follow after righteousness," &c. 

The hymn as given in the collection consists of the first nine 
stanzas of the original, omitting the second and seventh. The 
first line of verse seven reads thus : — " My mercy will I cause 
to rest," &c. This hymn was added to the collection after Mr 
Weslev's death, as indicated by the asterisk. 



F 



82 



The Methodist Hy inn-Book [Hy. i 14. 



Hymn 112. — "Woe is me! what tongue can tell." — The Good 
Samaritan. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

The original will be found in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1742, page 101, where it extends to eleven 
verses, four of which are omitted. 

The hymn contains an ingenious and evangelical application 
of the parable of the Good Samaritan. In the omitted portion 
the poet seems to imply that the poor sinner was a confessed 
backslider, in these words : — 

" God was once my glorious dress, 
And I like Him did shine ; 
Satan of His righteousness 

Hath spoil'd this soul of mine." 

This poem is considered by the Rev. John Kirk to be " the 
most chaste, tender, comprehensive, and eloquent poetic exposi- 
tion of the parable he has met with." The leading features of 
the parable are very clearly embodied in the poem. The com- 
position is believed to have had its origin in sermons which 
Charles Wesley was constantly preaching on the Good Samaritan. 
During a period of nine years there are no less than eighteen 
records in his Journal, of his showing to sinners the picture of 
their wretchedness, and the method of their cure, in this parable. 
He also records not a few instances of good results following 
these sermons. 

Hymn 113. — "O Thou, whom fain my soul would love." — "My 
Lord and my God." — Tune, Bradford, 1761. 

Taken from Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1742, page no. It is founded on Genesis xxxii. 24-32. The 
fourth verse of the original is omitted. 

Hymn 114. — "Jesus, in whom the weary find." — Upon parting 
with his Friends. — Tune, 112th Psalm Tune, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1740, page 49. The original is in four parts, extending to 
twenty-nine verses. The latter portion is chosen to make this 
hymn. There is much of genuine poetry in the composition, 
which is marked with feeling and beauty of thought 



Hy. 115.] 



and its Associations. 



83 



Hymn 115. — " Let the world their virtue boast.'' — / am deter- 
mined to know nothing, save Jesus, and Him crucified. — 
Tune, Calvary, 1761. 
Taken from Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 

1742, page 259. The original has nine stanzas, four of which 

are omitted. 

The poet takes up the apostle Paul's idea of his own un- 
worthiness, and closes each verse with the expressive declara- 
tion, " I the chief of sinners am ; " but adds the comforting 
assurance that " Jesus died for me." This is the language of 
unfeigned humility, and of profound self-knowledge. The allu- 
sion in verse three to Gideon is derived from Judges vi. 39, 40. 

A venerable old disciple in Methodism was John Tyrer, of 
Nineveh, near Birmingham, at the time of his death. He 
founded the first Sunday-school at Handsworth, and by his con- 
sistent earnest piety, greatly promoted the cause of God in the 
Soho works, where he was long employed. In death as in 
life, the Hymn-book and Bible afforded him constant delight ; 
and to a friend who called to see him, when the conflict was 
nearly over, he gave, as the only ground of his confidence and 
hope — 

" Let the world their virtue boast, 
Their works of righteousness ; 
I, a wretch undone and lost, 
Am freely saved by grace." 

He passed away in peace to the skies, saying, " All is well ! all 
is well ! " 

The author of this hymn had but one daughter who arrived 
at mature years. Miss Sarah Wesley was a person of much 
mental power, and possessed great general intelligence. She 
was much loved by both her father and the Rev. John Wesley. 
Most of her time was spent in literary pursuits. In her last 
illness, which was short, she visited her native city, Bristol, 
where she closed her earthly career. She often said, " I have 
peace, but not joy." When too feeble to converse, she would 
repeat the lines — 

" I the chief of sinners am, 
But Jesus died for me." 
These were nearly the last words she uttered. She died a 
member of the Methodist Society. 



8 4 



The Methodist Hymn- Bo ok [Hy. 115. 



The chief interest which attaches to this hymn, as a dying 
testimony, is that afforded from the use by John Wesley himself, 
and, partly in consequence thereof, the account of his death 
having been read by so many thousands of persons, it has been 
so very frequently used by his followers, when under similar cir- 
cumstances. Of these we have not space for more than a 
passing allusion. Further instances of the use of this hymn will 
be found in the index, at the end of the volume. 

The only account we have left us of the last days of John 
Wesley, the founder of the Methodist Societies, was written by 
Miss Elizabeth Ritchie, one of his most intimate friends, and 
one of the elect ladies of Methodism. From that account we 
learn that Mr Wesley preached his last sermon at Leatherhead, 
in Surrey, February 23, 1791. On the 24th he stopped at Mr 
Wolff's, at Balham, and on the 25th he returned to his own 
house at City Road. On the 26th he remained very feeble. 
On the 27th he seemed to be much exhausted, and said, 
" Speak to me ; I cannot speak." To the question, " Shall we 
pray with you, sir ? n he earnestly replied, "Yes." At the end 
of the prayer, he added a hearty Amen. In the afternoon, as 
indicating his own consciousness that the end was not far off, 
he said, " There is no need for more than what I said at Bristol.* 
My words then were — 

f I the chief of sinners am, 
But Jesus died for me.' " 

Miss Ritchie said, "Is this the present language of your heart ; 

* At the Bristol Conference, in 1783, Mr Wesley was taken so ill, 
neither he nor his friends thought he would recover. Expecting sudden 
death, and that speedily, he said to Mr Bradford, " I have been reflect- 
ing on my past life : I have been wandering up and down between 
fifty and sixty years, endeavouring in my poor way to do a little good 
to my fellow- creatures ; and now it is probable there are but a few steps 
between me and death, and what have I to trust to for salvation ? I 
can see nothing which I have done or suffered, that will bear looking at ; 
I have no other plea than this — 

' 1 the chief of sinners am, 
But Jesus died for me.' " 
This sentiment continued to influence him during the remaiuing eight 
years of his earnest active public life and ministry, and was the most 
prominent feeling of his mind when the fourscore and seven years of his 
life were ending. 



Hy. 117.] and its Associations, 



85 



and do you now feel as you then did?" He replied, "Yes." 
Soon after, he said to Miss Ritchie, "He is all ! He is all ! " 
To his niece, Miss Wesley, who sat by his bedside, he said, 
" Sally, have you zeal for God now ? " In the evening, he got 
up, and while sitting in his chair, he said, " How necessary is it 
for every one to be on the right foundation ! — 

" I the chief of sinners am, 
But Jesus died for me.' 

\Ve must be justified by faith, and then go on to sanctifl cation." 
During the next day, February 28, he slept much. On Tuesday, 
March 1, he was restless, but uncomplaining, and tried to 
sing part of two hymns. He also tried, but in vain, to write the 
memorable words, which he could only speak, " God is with us ; " 
and afterwards, " The best of all is, God is with us." After 
some kindly interchange of affectionate inquiries with Mr 
Rogers, Mr Bradford, and his sister-in-law, Mrs Charles Wesley, 
he said, " I ? 11 praise ! I '11 praise ! " These were the last words 
of the departing saint, excepting that shortly before he drew 
his last breath, on Wednesday morning, March 2, a few minutes 
before ten o'clock, he said to Mr Bradford, his faithful friend, 
who had just then prayed with him, " Farewell ! " As his 
spirit escaped from its clay tenement, his friends were kneeling 
around his bed, commending him to his Father and their 
Father in heaven. 

Hymn i 16. — " Saviour, cast a pitying eye/' — For one Fallen front 
Grace. — Tune, Foundery, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley, and forms No. 55 in " Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," vol. i., 1749. The second verse is omitted ; 
and in the third verse, " Thy own sweet mercy," is changed to 
" Thy love and mercy." 

Hymn 117. — " God is in this and every place." — For one Con- 
vinced of Unbelief.— -Tune, Fetter Lane, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley, and forms No. 9 in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," vol. L, 1749. The original has sixteen stanzas ; 
the first ten and the fifteenth are omitted. In the last verse the 
author shows with what ease he can adopt, even in verse, scrip- 
tural ideas and language. There is a singular coincidence 



86 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 119. 



deserving of notice in this, as well as in another of Charles 
Wesley's hymns. The first two verses read thus — 

" And have I measured half my days, 
And half my journey run, 
Nor tasted the Redeemer's grace, 
Nor yet my work begun ? 

" The morning of my life is past, 
The noon almost is o'er ; 
The night of death approaches fast, 
When I can work no more." 

When these lines were written, their author was in his fortieth 
year ; he died aged eighty. How did he obtain the knowledge 
that he had measured half his days ? These facts are indisput- 
able, account for them who may ! There are many statements 
in the entire hymn which are certainly not applicable to Charles 
Wesley. 

Hymn 118— "Author of faith, to Thee I cry."—" Ask, and it 
shall be given" (Matt. vii. 7).— TUNE, Snowsfield's, 1761. 
The original was written by Charles Wesley, and is the first 
of six hymns which are printed at the end of a small tract, 
entitled, " A Short View of the Differences between the Mo- 
ravian Brethren in England, and J. and C. Wesley/' 1745. It 
is printed also as No. 10 in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," vol. 
i., 1749. In the latter portion of the hymn, the poet plainly 
states what is the gospel plan of salvation, in contradistinction 
to the errors then taught by some of the Moravians. 

Hymn 119.* — * Father of Jesus Christ, my Lord/ — "But thou, 
when thou prayest, enter into thy closet." — Tune, Aldrich, 
1 761. 

This hymn forms No. 2 in the Moravian tract just named ; 
and it is printed also in Charles Wesley's " Redemption 
Hymns " in 1747.. The title given to it now is, " Before Private 
Prayer." In the fourth verse, the poet urges his plea for full 
salvation — 

" Blameless before Thy face to live, 
To live and sin no more. " 

The seventh verse reads thus in the original — 



Hy. 124.] 



and its Associations. 



87 



' ' Kindle the flame of love within, 
That may to heaven ascend ; 
And now in grace the work begin, 
Which shall in glory end." 

This hymn, as well as the next one, was added to the collection 
after Mr Wesley's death. 

Hymn 120.* — " Comfort, ye ministers of grace." — Groaning for 
Redemption.— -Tune, Cary's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1742, page 109. The original is in four parts, and ex- 
tends to thirty-seven verses, of which two only are here 
given. 

Hymn 121. — "Expand thy wings, celestial Dove." — The Crea- 
tion. Gen. i. 2, 3, &c— Tune, Cary's, 1761. 

This is made up by uniting three of Charles Wesley's M Short 
Scripture Hymns," 1762, Nos. 3, 4, and 635, based on Gen. i. 
2, 3, and 2 Chron. vi. 20, 21. 

Hymn 122. — " O Thou who hast our sorrows borne." — For 
Families. — Tune, Travellers, 1761. 

This forms No. 19 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Families," 
1767. One verse is omitted. The poet describes in terse strong 
language our Lord's sufferings. 

Hymn 123. — " Let the redeem'd give thanks and praise." — For 
Families. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

This forms No. 90 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Families," 
1767. The original is in double verses, and sixteen lines are 
omitted, whilst others are transposed in their order. 

Hymn 124, — " O that I, first of love possess'd." — On going to a 
new habitation. — Tune, Woods, 1761. 

No. 1 12 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Families," 1767. Two 
verses are left out. It has the appearance of being based on 
Exodus xxxiii. 20-22. The poet, strangely enough, in the first 
verse asks to see the Lord, although he knew that such a privi- 
lege was denied to mortal eyes — u Ye cannot see my face and 
live." 



88 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 127. 



Hymn 125. — "Othat I could my Lord receive/' — For Love. — 
Tune, Brockmer, 1761. 

This forms No. 159 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Families." 
Two verses after the second are omitted. 

For earnest piety and devoted service, no Methodists can 
exceed the Irish. Sarah Jones, of Farnee County, Wicklow, 
feared the Lord from a child. At fifteen, during a revival, she 
obtained a clear sense of her acceptance with God. As a teacher, 
leader, and missionary collector, she laid herself out for daily 
service. Her voice, her pen, and her example were all used for 
the glory of God, and to help the young on their way towards 
heaven. Her last illness was short and severe, but she clung to 
the Cross. Her last words were — 

" 6 Nothing I ask or want beside, 
Of all in earth or heaven, 
But let me feel Thy blood applied, 
And live and die forgiven.' " 

Hymn 126. — " Too strong I was to conquer sin." — Judges vii. 2, 
&c. — Tune, Welling, 1761. 

This is formed by uniting Nos. 400 and 778 of Charles 
Wesley's "Short Scripture Hymns," 1762, vol. i., based on 
Judges vii. 2 and Job xl. 4. 

Hymn 127.—" Wherewith, O God, shall I draw \\Z2,x!'—Micah 
vi. 6, &c. — Tune, St Luke's, 1761. 

Written by Charles Wesley, and found in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1740, page 88. There is a pathos and power in 
the pleadings of the poet ; and as the Saviour's intercessions are 
represented as accompanying those of the penitent, the blessing 
desired is obtained. 

Havjng the advantage in early life of the personal advice of 
Mr W^lgiey, Mrs Fletcher, and Mrs Crosby, Frances Ness 
yielded willingly to the strivings of the Holy Spirit, and under 
a sermon': preached by the Rev. George Story in 1778, she was 
brought ttpGod, and during the rest of her days was a faith- 
ful and devoted Methodist. She possessed in a remarkable 
degree the spirit of the Master, which she tried to diffuse around 
her. A little before her death, she said to her minister — 
" * I nothing have, I nothing am ; ' 



Hy. 128.] 



and its Associations. 



89 



my trust is alone in Jesus. I am going home, praise the Lord/' 
She died saying, " Victory ! " 

At the age of twenty, the Rev. John Fisher was convinced of 
sin under a sermon preached by Mr Moon, and soon afterwards 
he received the blessing of pardon. From a sense of gratitude 
to God, he soon began to exhort, and became a local preacher. 
In 1802 he became an itinerant preacher in Methodism, and 
laboured with success and acceptance in several circuits. But 
his career was brief ; illness set in, under which he sunk, but 
although tried in affliction, his spirit triumphed over it. Nearly 
his last words were — 

" « Jesus, the Lamb of God, hath bled ; 
He bore my sins upon the tree ; 
Beneath our curse He bow'd His head ; 
'Tis finished ! He hath died for me.' " 

Hymn 128. — "With glorious clouds encompassed round/' — For 
Families. — Tune, St Paul's, 1761. 

This forms No. 161 of Charles Wesley's "Hymns for Families," 
1767. In the first line, " encompast" is altered. The sentiment 
conveyed in the first verse is also contained in the first verse of 
Hymn 130. The line, " Whom angels dimly see," seems to have 
been suggested by a similar expression of Milton's : — 

" Who sittest above these heavens, 
To us invisible, or dimly seen." 

— Paradise Lost, v. 157. 

Samuel Wesley, jun., in Hymn 561, has the following couplet : — 

"In light unsearchable enthroned, 
Whom angels dimly see." 

There is something inexpressibly affecting in the very earnest 
appeal in the second verse : — 

" Answer, thou Man of Grief and Love ! 
And speak it to my heart ! " 

Giving her heart to the Lord in early youth, Mrs Marriott, of 
Nottingham, became a Sunday-school teacher, missionary col- 
lector, and class-leader at Halifax Place Chapel. Though of 
delicate health, she was diligent in all her duties, earnest in her 
piety, and generous towards the cause of God and His poor. 
When illness laid her low, her faith in God was strong. All 
hope of recovery being past, she received the sacrament of the 



9° 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 129. 



Lord's Supper. At its close she said, " That offering still con- 
tinues new ; it is the Lamb newly slain : 

* I view the Lamb in His own light, 
Whom angels dimly see ; 
And gaze, transported at the sight, 
To all eternity.' " 

Her last testimony to the goodness of her heavenly Father was, 
" God supports me richly ; He has never left me to feel my weak- 
ness. Do not forget the goodness of God." 

At the age of eighteen, Thomas Bagshaw, of Rotherham, 
joined the Methodist Society, and he continued a steady mem- 
ber to the close of his life, serving with uprightness the offices 
of poor, society, and circuit steward. He suffered much for 
some months before his death ; but his mind was kept in peace, 
and shortly before his spirit escaped to God, he repeated the 
verse — 

" I view the Lamb in His own light," &c, 
as the evidence of his acceptance with God. 

Hymn 129. — " Adam, descended from above ! " — Isaiah xlii. 6, 7. 
—Tune, Guernsey, 1761. 

This forms No. 1044 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, vol. i., where it is printed as three eight-line 
verses. 

Under the heart-searching ministry of the Rev. William 
Bramwell, George Sargent, of Huddersfleld, the son of a Wes- 
leyan minister, was awakened to a sense of his sinful condition, 
at the early age of six years. Those convictions ripened into 
penitence and pardon, and were followed by a life of earnest, 
sincere godliness. At Kingswood School, as an apprentice, and 
as a medical student, he feared the Lord, and walked in His ways, 
always delighting in the means of grace and in the company of 
the Lord's people. On February 7, 1840, he was apparently in 
his usual health, and Mrs Sargent commenced the family devo- 
tions. When she had read the 129th hymn, after this verse — 

" Open mine eyes the Lamb to know, 
- Who bears the general sin away ; 
And to my ransom'd spirit show 
The glories of eternal day," 

Mr Sargent's mind seemed carried above all earthly things, and 



Hy. 132.] 



and its Associations. 



91 



absorbed in contemplating the truths contained in the hymn ; 
forgetting himself, he knelt down to prayer without the customary 
lesson from the Word of God. Observing the omission, he rose 
and read Psalms cxxi., cxxii., and after prayer retired to rest. 
Shortly afterwards, he complained of pain in his head. Assist- 
ance was at once procured ; but the last messenger had arrived : 
he became insensible, and within an hour he quietly passed to 
his rest with God. 

Hymn 130. — " Thou God unsearchable, unknown." — Isaiah 
xlv. 15. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

This is made up of Nos. 1055 and 1056 of Charles Wesley's 
" Short Scripture Hymns," vol. i., 1762. Two of the lines are 
altered. 

Hymn 131. — " Lord, I despair myself to heal." — "Looking unto 
Jesus? &c. — Tune, Evesham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 91. It is based on Hebrews xii. 2. The first and second 
verses of the original are left out ; the hymn commences thus — 
" Weary of struggling with my pain ; 
Hopeless to burst my nature's chain ; 
Hardly I give the contest o'er, 
I seek to free myself no more." 

Hymn 132.— "Jesus, the Sinner's Friend, to Thee."-— Galatians 
iii. 22. — Tune, Complaint, 1761. 

Charles W T esley's, in "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 92. The original has thirteen stanzas. This hymn consists 
of the 1st, 2d, 5 th, 6th, 10th, and 12th verses. 
The strong language used in the third verse — 

" Tread down Thy foes, with power control 
The beast and devil in my soul," 

the Wesleys and Whitefield learned from Bishop Hall and 
William Law. Southey, in his " Life of Wesley," relates the 
story of a merry-andrew who, attending the preaching of 
Whitefield, finding no common acts of buffoonery of any avail, 
to divert the attention of the audience, climbed into a tree and 
exposed himself in so disgraceful a manner as to make the 
brutal mob shout ; but the more decent people were abashed. 



9 2 



The Methodist Hy mn-Book [Hy. 136. 



Whitefield himself was for a moment confounded with such a 
spectacle, but recovering himself, he appealed to his audience, 
whether he had wronged human nature in saying with Bishop 
Hall, that " man, when left to himself, is half a fiend and half a 
brute ; 99 or in calling him, with William Law, " a motley mix- 
ture of the beast and the devil ? " — Southefs "Life of Wesley? 
vol. ii. page 192. 

Hymn 133. — " Jesu, whose glory's streaming rays." — The Change. 
—Tune, Islington, 1761. 

The original is a German hymn, written by Wolfgang Christian 
Deszler in 1692 ; the translation was made by John Wesley, 
and is found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a g e 99? 
w r here it is in six double verses, the first three only of which are 
here given, and divided into single verses. The remaining 
verses form hymn No. 196. The German author was the son 
of a pious author of Nuremberg ; he was born in 1660, and died 
in 1722. He published several devotional books, containing 
fifty-six hymns of his own, many of which are very beautiful. 

Hymn 134. — "Jesus, if still the same Thou art." — Matthew 
v. 3-6. — Tune, Frankfort, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 66. 

Hymn 135.—" Jesu, if still Thou art to-day." 
„ 136.—" While dead in trespasses I lie." 
" These things were written for our instruction? — Tune, 
Mitcham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 71. The two hymns form one in the original, extending 
to twenty-one verses, the thirteenth only being omitted, which 
reads thus — 

4 i While torn by hellish pride I cry, 
By legion lust possest, 
Son of the living God, draw nigh 
And speak me unto rest." 

The tenth verse is altered from " Long have I waited in the 
way." 



Hy. 139.] 



and its Associations. 



93 



Janeway's " Token for Children a was a book which afforded 
great delight to Fanny Wrightson, when only a child, and its 
teachings induced in her a love of piety and prayer which 
ripened into a sincere godly life. During an illness, at the age 
of fifteen, she obtained remission of sin, and after her recovery, 
she began to meet in class, became a Sunday-school teacher, 
and ultimately was married to the Rev. Henry Ranson, Wes- 
leyan minister. During life she remained a thorough and 
consistent Methodist, and in her last illness, even in extreme 
suffering, she displayed perfect submission to the will of 
God, and strong confidence in His power to deliver, often 
repeating — 

" If Thou impart Thyself to me, 
No other good I need : 
If Thou, the Son, shalt make me free, 
I shall be free indeed. " 

In her last utterance she tried to say, *' Thanks be to God, who 
giveth us the victory ; " but faintly saying " thanks ! " she 
sweetly entered into rest. 

Hymn 137. — "When shall Thy love constrain ?"—The Resigna- 
tion. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

Charles Wesley's, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1740. The original has twenty-two verses, the first eight and 
the last two being omitted. The first line reads thus, " And 
wilt thou yet be found ? " This is a great favourite with the 
people, probably arising from the simplicity of the language. 
Like many of the poet's hymns, the rhythm of this is occasion- 
ally imperfect. 

Hymn 138.—" O that thou wouldst the heavens rent." 
„ 139. — " Jesu ! Redeemer, Saviour, Lord." 
A Prayer against the Power of Sin. — Tune, Brockmer, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, page 
79. The original has seventeen verses. The hymn presents a 
grand and sustaining view of the omnipotence of the Deity, 
arguing from His power over the physical to that over the 
moral and spiritual. It is a sublime and characteristic com- 
position. 



94 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 141. 



Hymn 140. — " Come, O thou Traveller unknown." 
„ 141. — "Yield to me now, for I am weak." 
Wrestling Jacob. — Tune, Travellers, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 
1742. The original consists of fourteen verses. In the earlier 
editions of the collection it was printed as one hymn ; the 
editors of the edition in 1797 were the first to mar its uniformity 
by dividing it. The hymn is founded on the events recorded in 
Genesis xxxii. 26-29. 

Of this noble composition, so many have written in praise, it 
is difficult to select from the high testimonies. John Wesley, in 
his brief notice of his brother's death, observes : " His least 
praise was his talent for poetry, although Dr Watts did not 
scruple to say that that single poem, c Wrestling Jacob/ was 
worth all the verses he himself had written." James Mont- 
gomery, the Sheffield lyric poet, in his " Christian Psalmist" re- 
cords that " among Charles Wesley's highest achievements may- 
be recorded, 4 Come, O thou Traveller unknown/ in which with 
consummate art he carries on the action of a lyrical drama ; every 
turn in the conflict with the Mysterious Being against whom he 
wrestles all night being marked with precision by the varying 
language of the speaker, accompanied by intense increasing 
interest, till the rapturous moment of the discovery, when he pre- 
vails and exclaims, 6 1 know Thee, Saviour, who Thou art/ &c." 
This lyric was also an intense favourite with John Wesley, who 
frequently selected it to be sung in the public services. After 
his noble brother had in peaceful triumph passed away to his 
rest, John was always moved with intense emotion, visible to all 
who heard him, when he read that intensely touching couplet — 
" My company before is gone, 

And I am left alone with Thee." 

The Rev. John Kirk writes of " its wonderful conciseness, yet 
perfect and finished picturing of the scene on the Transjordanic 
hills, beyond the deep defile where the Jabbok, as its name im- 
plies, wrestles with the mountains through which it descends to 
the Jordan. The dramatic form, so singular in hymnic com- 
position, shadowing forth the action of the conversation ; the 
great force of its thoroughly English expression ; the complete 
finish and rhythm of its verse ; its straightforward ease, without 
any mere straining at elegance ; and the minuteness and general 



Hy. 141.] 



and its Associations. 



95 



beauty of its application of the narrative, have won the com- 
mendation of all competent critics." Wrestling Jacob was the 
theme of Charles Wesley's preaching as well as of his poetry. 
Before the hymn was published in 1742, he records having 
preached on Jacob wrestling for the blessing, on two occasions, 
on May 24, and July 16, 1741. On six occasions after the hymn 
appeared, he mentions in his Journal having discoursed on the 
deeply interesting theme : at the Foundery, in London, Octo- 
ber 6, 1743, and again in London, June 12, 1744, "when many 
wept with the angel and made supplication, and were encour- 
aged to wait upon the Lord;" at Bristol, January 29, 1749, 
when the power of the Highest overshadowed the audience; in 
Dublin, February 7, and also on March 7, 1748, when hearers 
went to their houses justified ; and finally, in Bristol, May 20, 
1748, when many were stirred up to lay hold on the Lord, like 
Jacob. The Rev. Thomas Jackson, in his " Life of Charles 
Wesley," vol. i., page 306, remarking on this poem, says, " It 
applies with admirable ingenuity and tact the patriarch's 
mysterious conflict, and the happy result to which it led, in the 
process of an awakened sinner's salvation." To have heard the 
poet's sermon on this mighty wrestling, with all the play of a fine 
fancy arranging the eminently evangelical topics in glowing 
colours before a crowded assembly, and then to have closed that 
discourse with the singing of part of that grand hymn, must 
have been a privilege of surpassing interest and delight.* 

That theme which had been made a blessing to many through 
the author's preaching, has been also blest to others through the 
poet's verse. Solomon Burrall, of Tuckingmill, Cornwall, was in 

* Mr George Macdonald has recently (1869) published in the Sunday 
Library, a volume entitled " England's Antiphon," in which he pro- 
fesses to give a review, with examples of the religious poetry of Eng- 
land. In this somewhat large collection of religious verse, Charles 
Wesley is represented by only one piece — " Wrestling Jacob ; " and 
to this the critic volunteers his opinion, that the hymns of this author 
"do not possess much literary merit. " Is literary merit the only 
quality of a hymn worth noticing? Will Mr Macdonald furnish 
evidence of the practical use of the hymns he has chosen, as those 
which do contain merit of other kinds, and which have been useful in 
leading sinners to Christ and to heaven ? If he cannot furnish such 
evidence, his depreciatory remarks on Charles Wesley's hymns will 
have but little weight with serious persons. 



g6 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 143. 



early life restrained from sin by the Spirit of God, and at the age 
of twenty, yielded his heart to the service of God. During forty- 
five years he was a member of the Methodist Society, and a 
useful worker in the Lord's vineyard, living in the uninterrupted 
enjoyment of the perfect love of God. The evening before his 
death, he put forth all his strength in singing the verse — 

" 4 Come, O thou Traveller unknown, 
Whom still I hold, but cannot see ! 
My company before is gone, 

And I am left alone with Thee : 
With Thee all night I mean to stay, 
And wrestle till the break of day.' " 

After this he spoke but little, and only to express his strong con- 
fidence in God. 

Hymn 142. — "Drooping soul, shake off thy fears." — Waiting 
for the Pro??iise. — Tune, Foundery, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 237. The original is in six verses, the fifth and sixth being 
omitted. 

Hymn 143.* — "Jesu, Lover of my soul." — In Temptation. — Tune, 
Hotham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1742, page 67. This hymn was not added to the collection till 
the year 1797. The original has five verses, the third being 
omitted. It delineates so correctly the views, feelings, and 
desires of all true Christians, that it has become a favourite 
among the pious of all denominations. 

" A fine, intelligent young Virginian, while residing in 
the Western States of America, became an infidel and a 
blasphemer of the name of God. From this state he was 
delivered by reading a work by Soame Jenyns, but whilst he 
became convinced of the truth of revelation, he did not feel its 
power. A lingering illness and fatal disease led him to reflec- 
tion and prayer. Three Christian friends sometimes visited him 
to spend the tedious hours in singing hymns. They one day 
entered his room and began to sing, 4 There is a fountain filPd 
with blood/ followed by 4 The voice of free grace/ &c. He then 
said to them, ' There is nothing I so much like to hear as the first 



Hv. 143.] and its Associations. 



97 



hymn you ever sung to me, 'Jesu, Lover of my soul/ We sung 
it again to the tune Martyn, and found the solemnity which had 
reigned in the room while singing the former hymn was changed 
to weeping. We struck the very touching strain of the second 
stanza, * Other refuge have I none/ The weeping became 
loud. The heart of him who had reviled Christ was broken ; we 
feared to sing the remaining stanzas owing to the prostration of 
the sufferer. A few days afterwards he said, ' I don't think I 
shall ever hear/ ' Jesu, Lover of my soul/ sung again, it so excites 
me that my poor body cannot bear it." — Belcher's Historical 
Sketches of Hymns. 

Mrs Harriet Beecher Stowe, describing the last hours of her 
distinguished father, Dr Lyman Beecher, says : " The last in- 
dication of life, on the day of his death, was a mute response to 
his wife, repeating — 

4 Jesu, Lover of my soul, 

Let me to Thy bosom fly.' " 

The Rev. H. W. Beecher of New York has written : " I would 
rather have written that hymn of Wesley's — 

1 Jesu, Lover of my soul, 

Let me to Thy bosom fly,' 

than to have the fame of all the kings that ever sat on the earth. 
It is more glorious. It has more power in it. I would rather 
be the author of that hymn than to hold the wealth of the richest 
man in New York. He will die. He is. dead, and does not 
know it. He will pass, after a little while, out of men's thoughts. 
What will there be to speak of him ? What will he have done 
that will stop trouble, or encourage hope ? His money will go 
to his heirs, and they will divide it. It is like a stream divided 
and growing narrower by division. And they will die, and it 
will go to their heirs. In three or four generations everything 
comes to the ground again for redistribution. But that hymn 
will go on singing until the last trump brings forth the angel 
band ; and then, I think, it will mount up on some lip to the 
very presence of God. I would rather have written such a 
hymn than to have heaped up all the treasures of the richest 
man on the globe. A man may be very useful and influential, 
and not be rich." 

" Righteousness to children's children," was a rich heritage, 
enjoyed by Julia E. Jordan. Her grandfather, the Rev. George 

G 



98 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 144. 



M'Elwaine, spent fifty-six years in the Methodist ministry ; 
whilst she herself commenced her Christian career in childhood, 
in answer to prayers offered by her parents. Symptoms of con- 
sumption having set in, she was taken from Nova Scotia to 
Bennuda, but no advantage being manifest, she returned home 
to die. Her life had been one of brightness and purity, and 
her last days testified to the holiness of her heart. In her last 
hours she saw Jesus in His power to save to the uttermost, 
and sang — 

44 Jesu, Lover of my soul, 

Let me to Thy bosom fly.' 

She called all her friends around her that she might encourage 
them to trust in the Lord ; and with grace triumphing over 
nature, she entered into rest. 

The consolation afforded to the young disciple by Mr 
Wesley's touching lines, was quite as acceptable by, and acces- 
sible to, the aged divine. Thomas Hartwell Home, the pains- 
taking theologian and learned author, was convinced of sin 
under a sermon by the Rev. Joseph Benson, and at once united 
himself to the Methodists. As a clerk to Mr Butterworth, and 
under the religious instruction of the Rev. Dr Adam Clarke, he 
served Methodism faithfully for some years, and ultimately got 
ordination in the Church of England. His great work, " The 
Introduction to the Critical Study of the Holy Scriptures/ 
originated in Methodism. He was faithful in the discharge 
of his duties as one of the metropolitan clergy, and died in 
honoured age, often repeating during his sickness — 

44 Other refuge have I none, 

Hangs my helpless soul on Thee," &a 

In this calm and resigned frame of mind, he exchanged mortality 
for life, aged 82. 

Perhaps there does not exist a hymn which has been more 
extensively quoted on death-beds. A volume, of considerable 
dimensions, might be made up of such examples, from Methodist 
sources alone. Some of these have a record at the end of this 
volume, in the index. 

Hymn 144.— "Thee, Jesu, Thee, the Sinner's Friend/ — Desir- 
ing to Love. — Tune, Musician's, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 



Hy. 147.] and its Associations. 99 



1742, page 242. The original has eleven verses, the second and 
third being omitted. " Dear Lord" is altered to " O Lord" and 
" My Lord" in two places. This hymn has much of the senti- 
ment and imagery of Wrestling Jacob. The sixth verse refers 
to the passing by of the Almighty before Moses, and the con- 
cluding verses glance at the parable of the Lost Sheep and the 
death of Moses, thus showing how thoroughly scriptural is 
Charles Wesley's poetry. 

Hymn 145. — " O Jesus, let me bless Thy Name !" — Desiring to 
Love. — Tune, Chapel, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, found in "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. i. The sixth and seventh verses of the original are 
left out. In the first line "kiss" is changed to "bless." Mr 
Bunting suggests that line four, verse 5, should read thus : " The 
surety who my debt has paid." 

Hymn 146. — " Still, Lord, I languish for Thy grace." — Desiring 
to Love. — Tune, SnowsfiekTs, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., the second and fourth verses of the original being left out. 

Hymn 147. — " O Love Divine, how sweet thou art !" — Desiring 
to Love— Tune, Chapel, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., three verses of the original being omitted. 

This hymn contains an extraordinary depth of feeling and 
desire, eager, impatient, resolute, combined with an extended 
view of the love of God, such as only a poet of much heart ex- 
perience like Charles Wesley could write. This fine,bold, poetical 
language may help private devotion, but is scarcely proper for 
general use in the sanctuary. Interruptions in the regular order 
of divine service are seldom to be commended, but we have an 
instance before us in which the monotony was broken with good 
effect. William Dawson, of Barnbow, Leeds, had once preached 
a very impressive sermon, and at its close gave out this hymn. 
When the choir were singing the third verse, " God only knows 
the love of God," he stopped them, and said, " Stop, friends ! 
If angels, the first-born sons of light, cannot understand the 
height, the breadth, the depth, the length of the love of 
God, how can we expect to fathom it while here below?" 



100 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 147. 



He then repeated, with deepest feeling, thrilling his large 
auditory — 

M * God only knows the love of God.' 

Let us sing it again, friends, for we shall all have to sing it in 

heaven — 

' God only knows the love of God.' " 

It need hardly be said that a profound feeling of majestic awe 
pervaded the vast assembly. 

Pardon to a sinner who has felt the agonies of deep repent- 
ance is often followed by an ecstasy of joy. Thomas Carter, of 
Catterick, after entering into the society of the children of God, 
and feeling the witness within him of his acceptance with God, 
one Sabbath morning, in the parish church, after the absolu- 
tion had been pronounced, modestly stood up in the gallery, 
and asked permission to tell the people what God had done for 
his soul, as he could confirm the truth just read, for God had 
pardoned him, being penitent. Such testimony is of rare 
occurrence ; the world would be the better, and the Church too, 
for the frequent repetition of such assurance. The good man 
lived according to that beginning, serving the office of prayer- 
leader on Sunday morning at seven o'clock, class-leader, 
steward, and trustee, with uprightness and fidelity. Only a 
few hours before his death he sang his favourite hymn, com- 
mencing — 

' ' O Love Divine, how sweet thou art." 

But voice and speech had well-nigh gone ; he seemed to pray 
to the last, and to " enter heaven by prayer." 

The labours of the late Mr Crabbe, of Southampton, were 
instrumental in bringing John Bailey, of Crowdhill, to the 
Saviour. He soon afterwards became useful in the Methodist 
Society as a class-leader and local preacher, and spent a long 
life, like Enoch, walking with God. The testimony of his friends 
was, " that he was a faithful man, and feared God above many." 
For three years he was afflicted with paralysis, but without 
complaint he endured all his privations. On the Sabbath be- 
fore he died, he awoke with the words on his mind — 

V O Love Divine, how sweet thou art," &c. 

When unable to speak, he made signs that he was happy. 



Hy. 154.] and its Associations, 



101 



Hymn 148. — " Father of Jesus Christ, the Just." — Seeking 
Redemption. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 
Is No. 14 in Charles Wesley's "Redemption Hymns," 1747. 
The original has five verses, two of which are omitted. 

Hymn 149.* — " Thus saith the Lord, — 'tis God commands." — 
Isaiah lxii. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., where it forms the sixth, and extends to thirty verses. 
This hymn commences with the twenty-first of the original, but 
the first line of that verse is altered from " Go through the gates, 
'tis God's command." Twenty-four of the verses are omitted. 

Hymn 150. — "Thou hidden God, for whom I groan." — Seeking 
Redemption. — Tune, Wednesbury, 1761, 

Forms No. 27 of Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns." 

Hymn 151. — " Out of the deep I cry." — Seeking Redemption. — 
Tune, West Street, 1761. 

Is No. 20 of Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns." 

Hymn 152. — "Ah! whither should I go?" 
„ 153.— "Lo ! in Thy hand I lay." 
God will have all Men to be Saved. — Tune, Lampes, 1 746. 

No. 14 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns on God's Everlasting 
Love," 1 741. The two form one in the original, and it is based 
on 1 Timothy ii. 4. Nine verses are omitted, and several lines 
are altered. 

Hymn 154. — " Fain would I leave the world below." — A Hymn 
for Midnight. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
pp. 55, 56, where the first verse commences thus : " While mid- 
night shades the earth o'erspread." The original has six verses, 
the first and second being left out. This hymn commences 
with the third verse ; the last line of verse 3 is altered from 
"And look my midnight unto day," to "darkness unto day ;" 
and the first line of verse 4, " error" is changed to "sorrow 
and line 6, verse 1, " since death " is changed to " since faith." 

This hymn was written by Charles Wesley about the year 1737, 



102 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. i 56. 



before his conversion, and he gave it then the title, " A Mid- 
night Hymn, for one under the Law." It describes, in melan- 
choly, plaintive language the distressing state of spiritual 
gloom of the author himself. John Wesley, in selecting this 
hymn for his collection in 1779, aptly placed it in the section 
" For Mourners convinced of Sin," and altered it in several 
places. " In its altered state," observes the Rev. Thomas 
Jackson, " it no longer appears as the desponding language of 
a real Christian, expecting to be made free from sin and misery 
by the body's dissolution, but as the prayer of a weeping peni- 
tent convinced of his guilt, and looking for present deliverance 
through faith in the blood of Atonement." 

Hymn 155.— " God of my life, what just return."— Re- 
covery fro?n Sickness. — Tune, Athlone, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 82. 

" This hymn," says Mr Jackson, "is a fine specimen of Charles 
Wesley's poetic genius, unimpaired by disease." Mr Bunting 
suggests that a better title would be, " For Evening Worship." 
For that purpose he used it. The original has seventeen verses, 
the first seven, and two others, being left out. The first line 
commences thus — " And live I yet by power divine ?" Whilst 
at Oxford, during the year of his conversion (1738), the poet 
was so dangerously ill, he did not expect to recover. Feel- 
ing the same sense of gratitude to God for his restoration to 
health as did King Hezekiah under similar circumstances, the 
poet bases his thoughts on the account of the king's recovery 
(2 Kings xx. 1-11), and from thence he has produced a truly 
sublime hymn. These stanzas, in sublimity of thought and 
strength of expression, surpass Addison's fine hymn, written 
under similar circumstances, which commences, " When rising 
from the bed of death," &c. 

Hymn 156. — "O disclose Thy lovely face."— My soul gasp eth 
for Thee as the thirsty laizd" &c. — Tune, Dedication, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 60. This hymn is a composite, made up in this way : 
the first verse forms in the original the second of five, the 
remaining four of that hymn being left out. The first line of 
the hymn commences, " Lord, how long," &c. To that one verse 



Hy. 157.] and its Associations. 



103 



is added two others from another hymn on the next page, 
entitled, " A Morning Hymn," which commences, " Christ, whose 
glory fills the skies." 

In Toplady's works, part of this hymn is inserted as belong- 
ing to that author, which is a misappropriation. Similar senti- 
ments are found in a hymn by Sir Robert Grant, and quoted by 
Mr Punshon in his sermon on the " Christian Inheritance." 

At Oxhill, Kineton, preaching by the Methodists was held for 
a long period only fortnightly, on a week evening ; and this was 
about to be given up, when Mrs Gardner and three other per- 
sons formed a society, began to meet in class, and then there 
followed a gracious revival. For forty-eight years she continued 
in fellowship with the Methodists, manifesting her love to God 
by her care for the preachers, her diligent attention on the 
ordinances of religion, and her liberal support of church funds. 
During her last illness she was severely tried by the enemy ; but 
prayer was made for her, and she obtained the victory, saying, 
" Precious Jesus ! His blood cleanseth from all sin." She often 
repeated, and tried to sing verses of hymns, especially the lines — 
' " Haste, my Lord, no more delay, 
Come, my Saviour, come away." 
Thus calmly did she wait till the heavenly convoy escorted her 
home. 

Hymn 157. — " My sufferings all to Thee are known." — Written 
in stress of Temptation. — Tune, Dresden, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 84. The original has twenty verses, twelve of which are 
omitted, and two are transposed. 

Mrs Bennett, of Tempsford, from her youth, had been subject 
to a painful contraction of the throat. The aperture for food 
was so narrow as to threaten death by starvation. Medical 
skill was tried in vain. Thirty years she had lived happily with 
her husband and family, but taking a cold whilst visiting two 
of her sons in Norfolk, the malady was increased, her sufferings 
were very severe, and she wasted away to a mere shadow of her 
former self In this extreme trial, she found support from her 
confidence in God, and her reliance on His promises. Charles 
Wesley's beautiful and pathetic hymn was never more appropri- 
ately used than by this sorely-tried Christian. Often did she 
repeat — 



104 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 1 58. 



V My sufferings all to Thee are known, 
Tempted in every point like me ; 
Regard my grief, regard Thy own ; 
Jesus, remember Calvary ! 

" Art Thou not touch'd with human woe? 
Hath pity left the Son of man ? 
Dost Thou not all my sorrows know, 
And claim a share in all my pain ?" 

She had to struggle for life ; the claims of her family seemed 
to produce a wish to be spared ; the world itself had no charms 
for her. She at length gave up all to the care of her heavenly 
Father, and patiently waited the release of her happy spirit from 
her suffering body. 

It is only as " last-words ? that we value some things which 
would otherwise pass without notice. John Clarkson Sutcliffe, 
of Barnsley, was for many years an earnest Christian, giving to 
God a portion of every day's time, his journals being headed 
on alternate pages "eternity" and "time;" and under each, 
daily, was usually made some entry, indicating his methodical 
way of living, and his spiritual-mindedness. Here is one entry 
worth writing in letters of gold, " I have not had a barren class- 
meeting for several years." When smitten with paralysis, he 
suffered much ; but on the Sabbath before his death, his speech 
was partly restored to him, and he read with delight the hymn 
commencing — 

" My sufferings all to Thee are known." 
He was then engaged in closet prayer, about four hours before 
the final stroke ; thus he consecrated his latest consciousness 
to his loved employ, and retiring to rest, he slept in Jesus. 

Hymn 158. — " O my God, what must I do ?"— " The heart is 
deceitful? &c. (Jer. xvii. 9). — Tune, Brays, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 41. The original has twelve verses. The first commences 
thus : " O my false deceitful heart." The first eight verses are 
omitted. 

Some of the expressions in this hymn are so strong as scarcely 
to be reconcilable with man's free agency. For example, in the 

second verse — 

" Force me, Lord, with all to part ; 
Tear these idols from my heart/' 



Hy. 162.] 



and its Associations. 



Mr Bunting suggests an improvement in three lines : line five, 
verse one, to read thus : " Over all, if God Thou art ; " and the 
last line of the second and third verses to read as follows : 
" Make me a new creature now." 

Hymn 159. — " Lay to Thy hand, O God of Grace if — Groaning 
for Redemption. — Tune, Whitsunday, 1791. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 79. The original is in four parts, extending to thirty-six 
verses. This hymn consists of the last three verses of part hi. 
The tune is not in any of Mr Wesley's music books. 

Hymn 160. — " O Jesus, my hope, For me offer'd up." — A Peni- 
tential Hymn. — Tune, Passion, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 38, where it is printed in six-line stanzas, like the 
New- Year's Hymn. The second verse is left out. The doctrine 
of Christian perfection is strongly expressed in some parts of 
this hymn. 

HYMN 161.—" Stay, thou insulted Spirit, stay." — A Penitential 
Hymn. — Tune, Welling, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 41. The sixth verse is left out. 

In this, as in a former hymn, the poet refers to his own age, 
the original having been written just in the middle of his early 
life ; and it indicates deep feelings of penitential sorrow in his 
own heart. 

4 4 Though I have steel' d my stubborn heart, 
And still shook off my guilty fears ; 
And vex'd and urged Thee to depart 
For forty long rebellious years." 

The word "forty" John Wesley changed into "many," and 
some other judicious alterations were made by him in other 
parts of it. 

Hymn 162.*—" O my offended God."— GWj Everlasting Love. 

Forms No. 5 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on God's Ever- 
lasting Love," 174T. The original has seventeen stanzas, 
twelve of which are omitted. This was added after Mr Wesle/s 
death. 



io6 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 164. 



Hymn 163. — " When, gracious Lord, when shall it be." — Come, 
Lord Jesus. — Tune, Complaint, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1742, 
page 201. The original has thirteen stanzas, the fourth to the 
ninth being left out. The first line in the original commences, 
" When, 1 dearest 9 Lord," which is altered to " gracious." 

The idea contained in the second verse, " O dark ! dark ! 
dark ! I still must say," is similar to a line in Milton's " Sam- 
son Agonistes," line 80, as follows: "O dark! dark! dark! 
amid the blaze of noon." The last verse of the hymn com- 
mencing, " Lord, I am blind/' may have been suggested to 
Milton's fertile mind by the fact of Samson's blindness, or 
by his own blindness, or both. 

Never was the "beauty of holiness" more marked in a 
Christian's life, than in that of Mary Isaac, wife of the Rev. 
Daniel Isaac, who was born in York, and died there at the 
patriarchal age of ninety-seven years. How early in life she 
began to serve the Lord is not now known ; she was a matured 
Christian when married in 1808, and for twenty-five years was 
a help-meet indeed to her husband. During many years of 
widowhood, her cry was, " Not my will, but Thine be done." 
Her piety was deep ; her love of the Bible, of the means of 
grace, and of the Lord's people, was intense. Though long 
past fourscore years, scarcely a wrinkle marked her beautiful 
countenance ; her complexion was fair and clear as that of a 
child, and that of her face serenity itself. Although a martyr to 
pain, no complaint escaped her lips, but rather, " Thy will be 
done, O Lord, not mine." During the watches of her last night 
on earth, she repeated — 

" When, gracious Lord, when shall it be, 
That I shall find my home in Thee?" 

She breakfasted in the morning at eight, after which her niece 
assisted her out of bed, when she said, " I believe I am dying," 
and in a few moments, in great peace, she departed to be with 
Christ. 

Hymn 164. — " Lord, regard my earnest cry." — " The Woman of 
Canaan" (Matt. xxv. 22-28). — Tune, Calvary, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 96, where there are nine verses, three of which are left out. 



Hy. 168.] 



and its Associations, 



107 



Hymn 165. — "Come, holy, celestial Dove." — For Whitsunday. 
— Tune, Thou Shepherd of Israel, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Kymns of Petition and Thanksgiving 
for the Promise of the Father," page 29. 

Hymn 166. — "Jesus, take my sins away." — " The Pool of 
Bethesda" (John v. 2, 9).— Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 98. The original has eleven verses, five of which are left 
out, and the sixth verse is made up of parts of two other verses. 

Hymn 167. — "Lamb of God, for sinners slain." — Looking to 
Jesus. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 49. Two of the six verses in the original are left out. 

Hymn 168. — " Depth of mercy, can there be." — After a Relapse 
into Sin. — Tune, Savannah, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 82. The original is in thirteen stanzas of four lines each, 
one of which is omitted, and the eighth is transposed. This 
hymn commences the third section of the collection, with the 
title, " For Persons Convinced of Backsliding." 

An actress in one of the provincial towns, whilst passing 
along the street, had her attention arrested by singing in a 
cottage. Curiosity prompted her to look in at the open door, 
when she saw a few poor people sitting together, one of whom 
was giving out hymn 168 — 

" Depth of mercy, can there be 
Mercy still reserved for me?" 
which they all joined in singing. The tune was sweet and 
simple, but she heeded it not ; the words had riveted her 
attention, and she stood motionless, until she was invited to 
enter. She remained during a prayer which was offered up 
by one of the little company, and which, though uncouth 
in language, carried with it the conviction of sincerity. She 
quitted the cottage, but the words of the hymn followed her, and 
she resolved to procure a copy of the book containing it. The 
hymn-book secured, she read and re-read this hymn. Her 
convictions deepened, she attended the ministry of the gospel, 



io8 



The Methodist Hymn- Book [Hy. 168. 



and sought and found that pardon which alone could give her 
peace. Having given her heart to God, she resolved henceforth 
to give her life to Him also ; and, for a time, excused herself from 
attending on the stage. The manager of the theatre called upon 
her one morning and urged her to sustain the principal char- 
acter in a new play. This character she had sustained in other 
towns with admiration, but now she gave her reasons for refus- 
ing to comply with the request. At first the manager ridiculed 
her scruples, but this was unavailing ; he then represented the 
loss which her refusal would be to him, and promised, if she 
would act on this occasion, it would be the last request of the 
kind he would make. Unable to resist his solicitations, she 
promised to appear at the theatre. The character which she 
assumed required her, on her entrance, to sing a song, and as 
the curtain rose the orchestra began the accompaniment. She 
stood like one lost in thought ; the music ceased, but she did 
not sing ; and, supposing she was embarrassed, the band again 
commenced, and they paused again for her to begin, but she 
opened not her lips. A third time the air was played, and then, 
with clasped hands and eyes suffused with tears, she sang — not 
the song of the play, but 

" Depth of mercy, can there be 
Mercy still reserved for me ? 
Can my God His wrath forbear ? 
Me, the chief of sinners, spare ? " 

The performance suddenly ended ; many ridiculed, though some 
were induced from that memorable night to " consider their 
ways," — to reflect on the power of that religion which could 
influence the heart and change the life of one hitherto so vain. 
The change in the life of the actress was as permanent as it was 
singular ; and after some years of a consistent walk, she at 
length became the wife of a minister of the gospel of Christ. 

At an early period of life, Ralph Ravenscroft, of Runcorn, was 
converted to God. He retained an unbroken sense of his 
acceptance with God to the end of life. His last visit to his 
class was a season of special blessing. His ambition was to 
have the faith which endured as did that of Abraham. Shortly 
before his death he was heard pleading for immediate and full 
salvation, exclaiming, " Why not now?" Then breaking out in 
singing— 

" Depth of mercy ! can there be," &c. 



Hy. 171.] 



and its Associations, 



109 



God graciously prepared him for the final hour, which found 
him waiting to enter into the " mansions " of the redeemed. 

Forty years was the limit of time allotted to Mrs Glass, of 
Chichester, for twenty of which she was a consistent member of 
the Methodist Society. Her piety was deep, and her conduct 
exemplary. She was able to testify that the blood of Jesus 
Christ cleansed from all sin. Not long before she died, she said, 
with emphasis — 

<£ God is love ! I know, I feel ; 

Jesus weeps, and loves me still ! " 

Her last words were, " I am going to glory," and breathed out 
her spirit to God. 

Amongst the first members of the Methodist Society in 
London were the parents of Elizabeth Dowsett ; her father was 
one of the local-preachers at the old Foundry, where she 
herself worshipped, being a regular attendant at the five o'clock 
morning preaching by Mr Wesley for many years, and she was 
honoured with the personal friendship of that great and good 
man. Her conversion was thorough, and her religion that ot 
love. For nearly eighty years she was a member of the Metho- 
dist Society. Her life was one of holy service, and her 
experience was that of quietness and assurance. As she drew 
near her end, her peace seemed to flow as a river. Some of her 
last words were — 

"God is love ! I know, I feel ; 
Jesus weeps, and loves me still ! n 

and in peaceful triumph she went to heaven. 

Hymn 169.* — "Jesus, the all-restoring Word." — A Morning 

Hymn. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 25. This was first added to the collection in 1797, and 
included all the six verses, the sixth having been omitted since 
the year 1830. 

HYMN 170.—" O 'tis enough, my God, my God !" 
„ 171.—" O God, if Thou art love indeed." 
God's Everlasting Love. — Tune, 22d and 112th Psalm Tune, 

1761. 

These form together No. 9 in Charles Wesley's "Hymns on 



no 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 176. 



God's Everlasting Love," 1741, page 16. It has eleven verses, four 
of which are omitted. The first nine verses will be found in the 
first number of the Arminian Magazine, 1778, with the title, 
" Salvation depends not on Absolute Decrees." 

Hymn 172. — "O unexhausted Grace \ n — After a Recovery. — 
Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 93 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The original has seven verses, the first 
three of which are omitted. 

Hymn 173. — "Jesus, I believe Thee near."— For one Fallen 
from Grace. — Tune, Dedication, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 79 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The third verse of the original is 
omitted. 

Hymn 174. — " How shall a lost sinner in pain." — For one 
Fallen from Grace. — Tune, Funeral, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 71 in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, V °L *i 

Hymn 175.— "God of my salvation, hear." — After a Relapse 
into Sin. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 139. 

The Rev. William Barton, of whom previous mention has 
been made, after thirty years of service in the Methodist 
ministry, became an invalid from heart disease, but was able to 
realise peace through the atonement of Christ. His favourite 
hymn was the 175th, and he delighted to repeat 

" Friend of sinners, spotless Lamb, 
Thy blood was shed for me." 

These lines he repeated the night before his death; and the 
last word he was heard to utter was " Happy ! " 

HYMN 176.—" O God, Thy righteousness we own." — For one 
Fallen from Grace. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's ; forming No. 74 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, voL L 



Hy. 183.] 



and its Associations. 



in 



Hymn 177. — "Jesus, Thou know'st my sinfulness." — Groaning 
for Redemption .—Tune, Bradford, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 76. The original is in four parts, and extends to thirty-six 
verses. This hymn is selected from the second part, but seven 
verses out of twelve are omitted. In the first line " simpleness " 
is changed to " sinfulness." 

Hymn 178. — "Yes, from this instant now, I will" (Jer. iii. 4, 5). 
— TUNE, Cary's, 1761. 

Forms No. 11 68 of Charles Wesley's "Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, vol. ii. 

Hymn 179. — "Father, if Thou must reprove" (Jer. x., &c.) — 
Tune, Kings wood, 1761. 

Forms Nos. 1191 and 1211 of Charles Wesley's "Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," 1762, vol. ii., based on Jer. x. 24, and Jer. xxiv. 7. 

Hymn i 80. — " Saviour, I now with shame confess." — For the 
iniquity? &c. (Isa. lvii. 17-19) —Tune, Pudsey, 1761. 

Forms No. 11 13 of Charles Wesley's "Short Scripture 
Hymns," 1762, vol. i. 

Hymn 181. — " Thou Man of griefs, remember me." — " Who in 
the days of his flesh? &c. (Heb. v. 7, 8). — Tune, Palmi, 1761. 

Forms No. 686 in vol. ii. of Charles Wesley's " Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns " 

Hymn 182.— "I will hearken what the Lord."— Waiting for 
Christ the Prophet — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 210. This hymn is the first in the fourth section of the 
collection, with the title, " For Backsliders Recovered." 

Hymn 183.— " Jesu, Shepherd of the sheep,"— After a Recovery. 
— Tune, Foundry, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, No. 94 in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol i. Two verses of the original are left out. In line 



112 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 187. 



two of verse 3, Mr Bunting suggests this reading: "All my 
carnal mind control." 

Hymn 184.—" My God, my God, to Thee I cry."— After a 
Relapse into Sin. — Tune, Wenvo, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 154. 

Attending a love-feast at Weeton, near Knaresborough, where 
several young men, recent converts, related their experience, 
John Atkinson was convinced of sin, and at a prayer-meeting 
held in his father's barn at five o'clock in the morning, where 
those young men assembled often for prayer, he received a 
sense of pardon and adoption into the family of God. During 
forty years' membership with the Methodists, he never dis- 
honoured his profession. Just before the end of his pilgrimage, 
when contending with his last enemy, he began to sing — 
*' My God, my God, to Thee I cry ; 
Thee only would I know." 
And after prayer he said, " My God is reconciled, His pardon- 
ing voice 1 hear." Then praying for his family, on pronouncing 
the benediction, immediately his happy spirit joined the com- 
pany of the redeemed in heaven. 

Hymn 185. — "After all that I have done."— After a Recovery.— 
Tune, Magdalen, 1761. 
Forms N0.91 in Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1 749, vol. i. The original has seven verses, the fifth and sixth 
being selected for this hymn. In the last verse, so intense is 
the poet's grief for having sinned, that rather than fall again 
into sin, he twice asks that he may die before such an act of 
wickedness should overtake him ! 

Hymn 186. — "Weary of wandering from my God." — After a 
Recovery.— Tune, 113th Psalm, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 89 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1 749, vol. i. 

Hymn 187. — "Son of God, if Thy free grace." — After a 
Recovery. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742. 
The original has six verses, two of which are omitted. 



Hy. 189.] and its Associations. 



113 



Hymn 188. — "Lord, and is Thine anger gone?" — After a 
Recovery. — Tune, Kings wood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742. 
The original has eight verses, the two last being omitted. 

Hymn 189. — "Now I have found the ground wherein." — 
Redemption Found. — Tune, Norwich, 1761. 

Written in German by John Andrew Rothe, who was born in 
1688, many years a friend of Count Zinzendorf, was pastor of 
the Moravian church at Hernhutt, and died in 1758. He wrote 
forty-five hymns, many of which are very beautiful. This one 
has in the original ten verses. John Wesley's translation is 
faithful and free ; it has made the hymn a great favourite with 
many Christians, and is much sung by his people. From its 
first publication in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, page 91, 
it has found multitudes of admirers. Perhaps there is not in 
the whole collection a hymn which is so full of Scripture truth 
in Scripture phraseology. One lover of this hymn has been led 
to compare it with the Word of God, and he has found no less 
than thirty-six separate passages of Scripture which, in language 
or spirit, correspond with the several lines of this hymn. When 
the translation of this hymn was finished, John Wesley sent a 
copy of it to P. H. Molther, one of the German Moravians in 
London, and under date of January 25, 1740, M. Molther returns 
the translation with his approval of all but one verse, which 
Mr Wesley altered as suggested. We learn from M. Molther's 
letter, first, that Mr Wesley willingly asked advice of others 
whose knowledge was reliable ; and secondly, that he readily 
adopted such advice when given. This hymn has won the 
admiration of thousands, and it will be admired to the end of 
time. The third stanza was translated by Molther, whose ren- 
dering Mr Wesley adopted. 

The last two lines — 

"While Jesu's blood, through earth and skies, 
Mercy, free, boundless mercy cries ! " 

were almost the last words spoken by the saintly John Fletcher, 
of Madeley, whose faith in the truths they contain was so strong 
that his feeble voice re-echoed with surprising energy the words, 
" boundless — boundless mercy l v 

H 



U4 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 189. 



In the Wesley an Magazine for April 1 861, we read of the 
Rev. John Haigh, that on one occasion, at the end of a 
long life, while repeating the 189th hymn, on coming to the 
fourth verse, " With faith I plunge me in this sea," &c., he 
appeared completely absorbed, and with his eyes upraised, and 
his hands clasped, he at length broke silence with " Glory be to 
God ! Glory be to God ! " continuing to repeat, whisperingly, 
the verses following, and then sank into sleep with the last lines 
trembling on his lips — 

" Mercy's full power I then shall prove, 
Loved with an everlasting love." 

Mr Wesley visited Thorne in April 1766, when he was wel- 
comed to the hospitable home of Mr Meggitt ; eleven such visits 
did the good man pay to that home, and from that date till 1855 
the messengers of salvation were hospitably entertained by 
father and son. Samuel Meggitt succeeded to the house, and 
had the piety of his father, and his love of good men. From 
infancy he was under godly influences. In 1793, the Rev. 
Alexander Mather preached at Thorne, and under that sermon, 
young Meggitt, then only thirteen, was convinced of sin, and 
two years later he found pardon during a visit of George and 
William Masby, the praying colliers. For seventy-five years he 
greatly aided the cause of God at Thorne, then removed to 
Hull, where the influence of his family in promoting Methodism 
has been considerable. When paralysis laid the strong man 
low, he patiently endured his sufferings. Often in the night 
season he would awake with a verse of Scripture or of a hymn 
upon his lips. His rich and matured Christian experience 
delighted and instructed his visitors. Often did he request them 
to join him in singing to the tune of Euphony — 

"Now I have found the ground wherein 
Sure my soul's anchor may remain," &c. 

Seldom was it sung without his face becoming illumined with a 
heavenly halo, and tears of joy told of his happy heart. He 
passed away in peace to the haven of rest. 

Testimonies to the usefulness of this hymn are so numerous, 
the reader will find a summary of them in the index at the end 
of the volume. This hymn forms the first of the fourth part, 
with the title, " For Believers Rejoicing." 



Hy. 190.] and its Associations, 



Hymn 190. — "Jesus, Thy Blood and Righteousness." — The 
Believer's Triumph. — Tune, Cannon, 1761. 
Translated from the German of Count Zinzendorf, by John 
Wesley, and published in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 177. 

Nicholas Lewis, Count and Lord of Zinzendorf and Potten- 
dorf, was born at Dresden, May 26, 1700. His pious father was 
the prime-minister of Saxony. He became one of the most 
useful men in promoting religion, both in Germany and in 
England, though sometimes there was with it an admixture of 
dangerous error. He was for many years a most attached and 
endeared friend of the Wesleys, and his life by Spangenberg is 
one of the most interesting books of religious biography in the 
English language. He wrote many hymns, to which his noble 
wife and son added others also original, and he printed at his 
own private press at Chelsea two volumes of hymns, dated 
1754, which there had then been nothing to compare with in 
England for variety and deep spiritual experience. These two 
volumes are the basis of nearly all subsequent collections of 
hymns made in England. From a copy before us, with authors' 
names affixed, we find most of the translations made by the 
Wesleys. The count died very happy in May 1760. The 
original of this hymn has twenty-four stanzas; and John Wesley 
made, in 1739, a ^ ree an ^ faithful, though abridged, translation 
of this truly beautiful composition. A more complete transla- 
tion will be found in " The United Brethren's Hymn-Book," 
No. 326, extending to twelve verses. 

The interest which attaches to this hymn will be unceasing. 
It has been used by hundreds of Christians on their death-beds ; 
allusion to some of these will be found in the index. 

When divine things are seen in their true light, worldly things 
get into their right place. The father of the Rev. James 
Smitham was brought to a knowledge of the truth as it is in 
Jesus, through the prayers of his son. When father and mother 
were converted, the eldest son began to pray for his brothers, 
and James followed the happy example. After many years of 
useful labour in the Wesleyan ministry, he was laid aside by ill- 
ness. Addressing his son one day, he said, " I have had such a 
sight of my own defects and unfaithfulness, and such a view of 
the purity and holiness of God, as almost made me despair of 



n6 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 190. 

finding mercy at the last. I remembered that when your brother 
John was dying, he was delivered from his last fear by remem- 
bering and repeating the verse — 

Jesus, Thy blood and righteousness 

My beauty are, my glorious dress : 

'Midst flaming worlds, with these array'd, 

With joy shall I lift up my head.' 

I asked that the hymn-book might be given me, — I opened it, 
and the first lines on which my eye rested were those com- 
mencing — 

'Jesus, Thy blood and righteousness.' 
All my fear, doubt, and distress vanished, when, at the reading 
of that verse, I cast my soul on the Atonement ; and since that 
time I have enjoyed perfect peace." In his last hours he seemed 
to have sweet and mysterious manifestations of the heavenly 
world. His pleasant smiles, rapt looks, and upward pointing 
of the finger, indicated glorious visions to his own eyes, and he 
said, " I am coming ! " 

Sunday-schools were till quite recently unknown on the Con- 
tinent. In a letter from a German missionary, dated Carlsruhe, 
October 1865, we read some particulars of the death in that 
place of the first German Sunday-school superintendent. At 
his funeral the missionary read the first four lines of this hymn, 
as containing the creed of the departed man of God. Those 
simple and powerful words made a deep impression on all. 

An interesting story is told of Queen Christiana of Prussia, 
who, having seen a beautiful child, the little daughter of one 
of the palace gardeners, playing amongst the flowers, had 
the child brought to her in the palace the next day, and placed 
on a chair near her at dinner-time. The queen, by anticipation, 
enjoyed the delight and surprise she thought the child would 
express. But, to the astonishment of the queen, the little girl, 
looking quietly down at the table, repeated the following prayer 
for a blessing — 

" Christ's dear blood and righteousness 
Be to me as jewels given, 
Crowning me when I shall press 

Onward through the gates of heaven." 
No one spoke for a time ; but it seemed as though the innocent 
child, seeing the dinner provided, was asked to sing her blessing 
before meals, and she said it accordingly. 



Hy. 197.] and its Associations. 



117 



Hymn 191. — " Thee, O my God and King." — Hymn of Thanks- 
giving to the Father. — Tune, Irene, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 107. The fifth verse of the original is omitted. 

Hymn 192. — " Oft I in my heart have said." — Romans x. 6. — 
Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 179. The original has six verses, the last three of which 
are omitted. 

Hymn 193.— "O Filial Deity."— Hymn to the Son.— Tune, 
West Street, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 73. It contains an admirable poetical exemplification of 
the titles and offices of Christ ; the metre is of an unusual 
kind — a feature in which the author excelled. 

Hymn 194. — "Arise, my soul, arise." 
„ 195. — " High above every name." 
On the Titles of Christ. — Tune, West Street, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 165. The original has fifteen verses, six of which are 
omitted. This hymn is very similar in sentiment and line of 
thought to the preceding. Dr Watts has a hymn also similar, 
which commences — 

" Join all the names of love and power." 

These two were printed as one hymn by Mr Wesley; it was 
divided in 1830. 

Hymn 196. — " Into Thy gracious hands I fall." — The Change. — 
Tune, St Luke's, 1761. 
From " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a § e 99- Trans- 
lated by John Wesley from the German of Wolfgang C. Deszler. 
The original has six verses ; the other three form hymn 133, 
which see, for notice of author. 

HYMN 197. — "Happy soul, who sees the fay?— The Twelfth 
Chapter of Isaiah. — Tune, Love-feast, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 189. The original is in four-line stanzas. 



1 1 8 The Methodist Hymn-Book [ H Y. 198. 

HYMN 198.—" O what shall I do My Saviour to praise.'— A 

Thanksgiving. — Tune, Walsal, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1742, 
page 118. In Mr Wesley's "Sacred Melody," this hymn is 
printed to the tune of Tallis. 

When Methodism was a new thing in the land, and was 
everywhere spoken against, Elizabeth Toase, mother of the Rev, 
William Toase, at the age of fourteen, was converted to God, 
became a member of Society, and for seventy-three years re- 
mained faithful to her trust. She knew many of the first race 
of Methodist preachers. She was very happy in her last illness ; 
and when she was dying, she sang with a clear voice the verse 
commencing — 

" O what shall I do my Saviour to praise," &c. 

Ann Roberts, of Polruan, Liskeard, was converted to God, and 
joined the Methodist Society at the age of twenty-one, and for 
more than half a century maintained a consistent connexion 
with the people of her choice. She delighted in the ordinances 
of religion, and was never willingly absent from the much-loved 
class-meeting. In her last illness she delighted in repeating 
texts of Scripture and hymns, especially the one commencing — 

" O what shall I do my Saviour to praise," &c. 

When drawing her last breath, she said, " Glory shall end," and 
as her daughter added, " what grace has begun," she entered 
into glory. 

Having been favoured by hearing Mr Wesley preach at York, 
Margaret Dickenson never forgot the privilege she then enjoyed. 
She had for a long time a lingering attachment to the Metho- 
dists, and through the instrumentality of Messrs Spence and 
Burdsall, she was led to seek the Saviour. At a meeting, at 
which the verse was given out for singing — 

" O what shall I do my Saviour to praise," &c, 

the truth conveyed by the words of the hymn were so power- 
fully applied to her mind, that she was enabled to believe for 
herself, to enter into liberty, and to rejoice with joy unspeak- 
able and full of glory. After a life of usefulness in the Church, 
in honoured age, she entered into rest. 



HY. 200.] 



and its Associations, 



119 



Hymn 199. — " Heavenly King, Look down from above. " — A 
Thanksgiving. — Tune, Triumph, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 119. 

Early training in a Methodist Sabbath-school resulted in 
Elizabeth Nocke, of Newtown, becoming a teacher therein, then, 
after her conversion, a useful member of society. Whilst still young 
in years, an illness set in, which soon ended her earthly career, 
and, fixing her affections entirely on God, she realised as much 
of heaven upon earth as was possible for humanity to enjoy. 
She once said, " I heard music and singing ! Oh, the innumer- 
able company that have washed their robes, and made them 
white in the blood of the Lamb ! 71 Shortly before the mortal 
strife was over she said, " Thy rod and staff they comfort me.'' 
When passing away to her inheritance she was heard to say — 

" O heavenly King, Look down from above ; 
Assist me to sing Thy mercy and love : 
So sweetly o'erflowing, So plenteous the store, 
Thou still art bestowing, And giving us more." 

Her spirit escaped whilst she was saying, " Come, Lord Jesus." 

Hymn 200. — " My Father, my God, I long for Thy love." — A 
Thanksgiving. — TUNE, Tallis, 1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 119. 

The three hymns, of which this is the third, appear to have 
been written about the same time, and each has been made 
a blessing. Stephen Watson, of Sunderland, was under the 
happy influence of religious parents ; and when his elder brother 
joined the Society his worldly companions tried to induce him 
to give up his opinions. In reply, he entreated several of them 
to accompany him to the sick-bed of a young Christian, whose 
admonitory counsels produced conviction in their minds that 
they were in error. They began to seek the Lord ; their 
example influenced many others, and a blessed revival followed: 
amongst those with whom the Holy Spirit strove was Samuel 
Watson. For a fortnight his convictions were severe, and his 
anguish of spirit deep. Accustomed frequently to repeat verses 
of hymns, one day, whilst meditating on this verse — 



120 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 201. 



H My Father, my God, I long for Thy love ; 
O shed it abroad ; send Christ from above ! 
My heart, ever fainting, He only can cheer ; 
And all things are wanting, till Jesus is here/' 

his soul was filled with joy unspeakable, and all things around 
him wore a new aspect. Love to all men, especially the people 
of God, was immediately made manifest in his life and conduct, 
and he lived a consistent Christian course for more than fifty 
years. 

Hymn 201. — "And can it be that I should gain." — Free Grace — 
TUNE, Birmingham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 117. The original has one verse more than is here printed. 

It was written in 1738, immediately after the poet's conversion, 
and was printed in the scarce volume of " Psalms and Hymns " 
which appeared in that year. Read in the light of this fact, it 
is remarkable how minutely the poet describes his own personal 
experience, gratitude, and joy. When, at ten o'clock of the 
evening on which John Wesley entered into liberty, he, with 
several friends, went to Charles's room, in Little Britain, he 
informs us, "We sung the hymn with great joy, and parted 
with prayer." It is now difficult to determine which of two 
hymns, written on this occasion, was then sung, but it was either 
this or hymn 30. The fourth verse contains an expressive 
allusion to the deliverance of Peter from prison by an angel. 

That a hymn written under such circumstances should be 
made a blessing to thousands is not surprising. Every verse, 
and nearly every line of it, has been made useful in comforting 
some Christian. To notice all these is not possible : but it may 
be profitable to give an example of the use of each verse. 

In early life, Mrs Joseph Stocks, of Cudworth, Barnsley, 
became savingly acquainted with God, and testified to the 
genuineness of the change, by a long life of uniform devoted- 
ness to Christ and the interests of His Church and people. For 
fifty years she was made a blessing to many as a class-leader. 
Amongst the poor she was as an angel from heaven. In her 
last illness her countenance indicated the growing meekness of 
her spirit, and the faithfulness of God in assuring her of accept- 
ance with Him. She exulted in the prospect of reunion with 
sainted relations, but added, "It will be the Father's glory 



HY. 201.] 



and its Associations. 



121 



shining in the face of Jesus, that will be the crowning joy." 
She often repeated her favourite hymn, commencing — 

" And can it be that I should gain," &c. 

Dwelling with admiration and emphasis on the closing lines of 
that verse — 

" Amazing love ! how can it be, 
That Thou, my God, should'st die for me V 

In holy triumph she passed away to her rest, her last words 
being a request that her class should be attended to with care 
and diligence. 

Favoured with the drawings of the Holy Spirit even in child- 
hood, Mrs Christopher Dove, of Darlington, gave her heart to 
God in her nineteenth year, and joined the Methodist Society. 
Her life was brief, but one of continued joy and peace, and in 
her last illness she enjoyed a clear and strong evidence of her 
interest in Christ. Shortly before she died, she called the nurse 
to her bedside, and broke out with these lines — 

" And can it be that I should gain 
An interest in the Saviour's blood ? " 

On the nurse observing, " I trust you have gained," she sweetly 
smiled, and pressed her hand in token of assurance. When she 
came to the closing lines of the third verse — 

* ' 'Tis mercy all, immense and free, 
For, O my God, it found out ME," 

her soul seemed to be filled with adoring gratitude and love ; 
and she again repeated, with stronger emphasis — 
" For, O my God, it found out me." 

In the swellings of Jordan she had peace, and her soul cast its 
anchor within the vail. 

" To a mother's prayers, and a father's counsel and example, 
their children are indebted under God for their religious convic- 
tions, and their status in the Church of God." Such is the record 
made by a son of George Hobill, who, at the age of twenty-four, 
joined the Methodist Society at Daventry, and for more than 
fifty years maintained an unblemished reputation for integrity 
and consistency, and for more than forty-five years was a useful 
and laborious local-preacher. Though his career in life was 
a chequered one, he had confidence in God's promises ; and 



122 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[HY. 201. 



though in his affliction he was sorely tried, he found rock for 
his feet whilst passing over Jordan. Some of his last words 
were — 

u 'Tis mystery all ! The Immortal dies ! 
Who can explore His strange design ! " 

During an illness of some duration, Mrs Arnett, the wife of 
the Rev. Thomas Arnett, was sustained by the grace she had 
sought and enjoyed in health. As the end of her life drew near, 
she greatly exalted the mercy of Christ ; and shortly before her 
departure, while her husband was engaged in prayer, she joy- 
fully exclaimed — 

" 'Tis mercy all, immense and free, 
For, O my God, it found out me ! " 

Living for more than half a century in a spirit of cheerfulness 
and worldly gaiety, esteemed by her neighbours for her integrity 
and kindness, Mrs Sarah Obee, of Cawood, Selby, was awakened, 
during a revival, to a sense of her lost condition as a sinner. For 
two days and nights her anguish was so deep, she could neither 
take food nor rest. One of her friends, on hearing of her troubled 
mind, and being unacquainted with spiritual religion, said, " The 
Lord have mercy on us ! If Sally Obee needs to be converted, 
what is to become of us ? " In the depth of her contrition she 
exclaimed, "A wounded spirit, who can bear?" During the 
second night of her sorrow, after pleading earnestly for mercy, 
whilst walking in her bedroom, she repeated the hymn com- 
mencing — 

" And can it be that I should gain," &a ; 

and when she came to the fourth verse — 

" Long my imprison'd Spirit lay 

Fast bound in sin and nature's night ; 

Thine eye diffused a quick'ning ray ; 

I woke ; the dungeon flamed with light ; 

My chains fell off, my heart was free, 

I rose, went forth, and follow'd Thee," 

she was enabled to believe in Christ ; she received the witness 
of the Spirit to her adoption ; was filled with joy and peace 
through believing ; joined the Methodists ; and for thirty years, 
witnessed a good confession for Christ. Soon a class was com- 



Hy. 201.] and its Associations, 123 



menced in her house, and ultimately her husband also was 
brought to know the Saviour. 

Amongst the first-fruits of the labours of the Methodist 
missionaries in Jamaica, was the first wife of Mr Charles Davis. 
Her godly example lived after her ; and although her husband 
had persecuted her for her religion, yet about the time of her 
decease he became terribly alarmed by the untimely death of one 
of his ungodly associates. He began to attend the Methodist 
ministry, sought and found mercy in Parade Chapel, Kingston, 
and never lost the evidence of his acceptance with God to the 
day of his death. During the illness which closed his life, his 
soul was happy in God. On the day of his departure, when he 
supposed himself to be alone, he exclaimed, with much feeling, 
" Glory be to God ! 

1 No condemnation now I dread ; 

Jesus, and all in Him, is mine ! ' &c. 

6 Thy sins, which are many, are all forgiven ; glory be to God ! ' " 
On his daughter approaching him, and asking, " Is Christ 
with you in the valley?" he tried to reply ; and in the act of 
saying " Jesus Christ," the weary wheels of life stood still, and 
in peaceful triumph he entered into the joy of his Lord. 

In an account of the death of Mr Richard Murlin, brother of 
the Rev. John Murlin, the " weeping prophet/' in the Methodist 
Magazine, under date of St Austell, May 27, 1804, we read, that 
a week after his last illness commenced, the Rev. J. Anderson 
visited him, and he gave his religious experience in part of this 
hymn — 

" No condemnation now I dread ; 
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine." 

He added, " I feel the Spirit of God within me, and He will 
bring me triumphantly through." He suffered much, but passed 
quietly away at last, saying, "Jesus hath died ; and God is 
love." 

A revival of religion in her native village was the means of 
bringing Mary Lewis, of Berriew, to a knowledge of sins forgiven. 
Soon afterwards she was married to a godly husband, and they 
devoted their lives to the interests of religion. At the age of 
sixty-three she was left a widow, and from that time she sought 
richer manifestations of the Divine presence, especially in the 
class-meetings, to which she was often carried, rather than be 



124 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 202. 



absent. On the Sabbath before her death, she realised entire 
sanctification, and exclaimed — 

" ' No condemnation now I dread ; 
Jesus, and all in Him, is mine/ 

Glory to God ! Jesus is all in all ; " and quietly fell asleep with 
the name of Jesus on her lips. 

At the early age of thirteen, Mary Ann Gardner, of Shore- 
ditch, London, joined the Methodist Society, and soon afterwards 
was appointed the leader of a class of young females, over whom 
she watched with fidelity and affection. She was long a visitor 
of the Strangers' Friend Society, and engaged in other useful 
labours to promote the glory of God, until by illness she was 
laid aside. The last words she uttered, just as she was expir- 
ing, were — 

" Bold I approach the eternal throne, 

And claim the crown, through Christ my own." 

This hymn being associated with the conversion of the 
founders of Methodism, we give the omitted verse — 

" Still the small inward voice I hear, 
That whispers all my sins forgiven : 

Still the atoning blood is near, 
That quench' d the wrath of hostile heaven. 

I feel the life His wounds impart ; 

I feel my Saviour in my heart." 

HYMN 202. — " Arise, my soul, arise." — Behold the Man /— - 
Tune, Fonmow, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 264. It is utterly impossible to conceive how many tried 
believers have had their faith strengthened and their hope of 
heaven brightened by this inestimable hymn. It is full of that 
self-appropriation of the work of the Redeemer which is a 
marked feature in Charles Wesley's poetry. This feature is 
noticed by John Wesley himself in his " Journal." 

This hymn, like the one preceding it, has been made a bless- 
ing to multitudes of Christians, and almost every line of it has 
been used by persons in dying circumstances. Nor has it been 
less useful in bringing sinners to realise a sense of sins forgiven, 
of which many instances are on record. 

The necessity of constant preparation for heaven was never 



HY. 202.] 



and its Associations. 



125 



made more manifest than in the case of the sudden death of 
Mr James Collinson, of Liverpool, who, from being in a state of 
robust health, was, in thirty hours, numbered with " the dead 
who die in the Lord." At the age of twenty he gave his heart 
to the Lord, and served Methodism faithfully for nearly twenty 
years more. Though his last illness was short and severe, yet 
he gave clear evidence of his reliance alone on the atonement 
of Jesus. Raising himself up, with a strong effort, just before 
he died, he exclaimed, with marked feeling — 

u Arise, my soul arise, Shake off thy guilty fears ; 
The bleeding Sacrifice On my behalf appears ; 
Before the throne my Surety stands ; 
My name is written on His hands." 

Shortly afterwards he fell asleep in Jesus. 

In another, and somewhat similar instance of sudden death, 
the second verse of this hymn was used as a dying testimony. 
The Rev. John Strawe had arrived at his new home in the 
Sheffield East Circuit only a few days, when he became indis- 
posed. Typhus fever set in, and recovery at once became 
hopeless. His trust in Christ for salvation was unshaken, and 
among his last words were these, " Christ is my Saviour : 
' He ever lives above, For me to intercede.' 

Glory be to God ! all is bright, bright above." 

Amongst those honoured men who took part, in 1813, in 
forming the Wesleyan Missionary Society, the name of the Rev. 
James Buckley has a deservedly foremost place, he having 
preached one of the official sermons at Leeds on that interest- 
ing occasion. A somewhat lengthy and laborious service in 
the ministry of Methodism was followed by a short illness, in 
which he enjoyed much of the Divine presence ; and during his 
last night on earth he repeated, with much feeling, the second 
and third verses of the 202d hymn ; after which he spoke but 
little : his last words were, " For me the Saviour died/' 

In early life, Mary H. Thorneloe, wife of the Rev. W. B. 
Thorneloe, gave her heart to the Lord, and became a useful 
member of the Methodist Society. She was convinced of her 
sinful condition under a sermon preached by the Rev. John 
Moulton. Her after-life was spent in doing good ; and when 
prostrate by illness, her mind was kept in peace. After she had 
taken leave of those she loved on earth, she repeated the verse — 



126 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 202, 



" Five bleeding wounds He bears, Received on Calvary; 
They pour effectual prayers, They strongly speak for me ; 
* Forgive him, O forgive ! ' they cry, 
1 Nor let the ransom'd sinner die.' " 

After this, she spoke only to say, " Come, [Lord Jesus," and 
then peacefully escaped with a convoy of angels to heaven. 

The privileges of Christian fellowship are too lightly appre- 
ciated by many Christian professors. William Hiskins, of Fex- 
ham, Wilts, in conveying a ticket of membership to a Methodist 
living at a distance, remarked, " I value my ticket more than a 
pound-note, for it is the token of my connexion with a praying 
people : and they pray for me. I feel I need their prayers." A 
class-leader of such a spirit could not fail of being useful, and 
by doing good to others, being much loved in return. He was 
for seventy-four years in fellowship with the people of God. At 
the age of ninety, his love for the services of the sanctuary was 
unabated ; and on the day of his death, speaking of the evening 
service, he said, " I believe we shall have a good time this even- 
ing." The sermon that night was on the intercession of Christ. 
To a verse in the Hymn-book relating to this subject he was 
very partial, wishing to have it in recollection both in life and 
death. It was given out at that service ; and when his favourite 
verse was lined out for singing — 

Five bleeding wounds he bears, Received on Calvary," &c, 

he sang them with considerable energy. He asked the preacher 
to pray for his son-in-law, then near death, and to every petition 
he subjoined a hearty ''Amen/' After the service, he hastened 
to visit his afflicted son-in-law. His road lay by the side of the 
canal. He took his lantern and departed. Half an hour after- 
wards inquiry was made for him, but he could not be heard of, 
until his body was found in the canal. In trying to avoid a 
heap of stones, he had passed too near the water and fell in. 

In the year 1824, probably the oldest member of the Methodist 
Society in Ireland was Theophilus White, of Emo, Queen's 
County. He became a member of Society at the age of nineteen, 
and for seventy-four years sustained the Christian character with 
unblemished reputation. He maintained a clear sense of his 
acceptance with God, and only half an hour before his death he 
said, " Happy, happy ! sing, sing — 



HY. 202.] 



and its Associations. 



.127 



" * My God is reconciled, 

His pardoning voice I hear ; 
He owns me for His child.' " 

Here his voice failed, and in a few minutes his spirit took its 
flight to the house of his Father and God. 

For thirty-one years the Rev. William Nother laboured as a 
useful minister of Jesus Christ in the Wesleyan itinerancy. When 
health failed, and protracted heavy affliction overtook him, he 
lost not his confidence in God. As the end drew near, on being 
asked the state of his mind, he said his prospect heavenwards 
was bright, and added — 

" My God is reconciled, 

His pardoning voice I hear." 

But his breath failed, he was unable to finish the verse, and 
shortly afterwards fell asleep in Jesus. 

When feeble flesh is failing, and the consciousness of the near- 
ness of eternity is experienced, to be able to say of Christ 
that He is felt to be " a rock," " a refuge in a weary land/' is a 
source of comfort both to the dying and to those who receive 
the testimony. Such was the dying utterance, faintly breathed 
by George Dracott, of Wootton-under-Wood, who was for thirty 
years an attached Methodist. Almost the last words he was 
heard to speak were — 

" With confidence I now draw nigh, 
And boldly, Abba, Father, cry." 

While reading the second of the Ten Commandments, Ann 
Barnsley, of Oldbury, was deeply convinced of sin, and soon 
afterwards, in company with some friends who were pleading for 
her, she realised the blessing of pardon. Ten years subsequently 
she was " made perfect in love ;* and from that time she main- 
tained a life of perfect consistency. Shortly before she died, 
she spoke reverently of God the Father, the Son, and the Holy 
Ghost as ONE God, adding, u I shall soon see Him. I have no 
fear, no pain. 

* With confidence I now draw nigh, 
And boldly, Abba, Father, cry.' 

The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all sin. 1 " Thus 
triumphantly she entered upon her eternal rest in heaven. 
Probably the most remarkable, not to say astonishing, result 



128 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 202. 



from the use of a hymn is the following record, which has come 
to hand from a Wesleyan missionary, formerly labouring in the 
West Indies, and who has since his communication personally 
certified to the writer the truth of the statement hereafter made. 
The missionary observes : 66 1 feel it due to the honour and glory 
of God, to inform you of the utility of one hymn in particular, No. 
202, commencing, 4 Arise, my soul, arise/ &c. I have a record of 
upwards of two hundred persons, young and old, who received 
the most direct evidence of the forgiveness of their sins while 
singing that hymn [at different services and at various periods]. 
The conversion of the greatest number of these persons took 
place whilst I was a missionary abroad. My plan [of using the 
hymn] was the following :— After ascertaining as far as possible 
that the professed sorrow of the penitent was godly sorrow, we 
then commenced singing that hymn, requesting the penitent to 
join. Some of them would hesitate to sing the last verse ; in 
that case, I would begin to sing the whole or part of the hymn 
again, until the penitent had obtained courage to sing every 
part I have never known one instance of a sincere penitent 
failing to receive a joyous sense of pardon while singing that 
hymn. 

" I could give interesting circumstances of the use of this 
hymn both to the living and dying. Upon one occasion, 
seven young persons, under concern for their salvation, visited 
me ; after about two hours' engagement, praying, &c, while 
singing that hymn six of them obtained a clear sense of pardon. 
A lady, about eighty years old, on being seized with paralysis, 
became much concerned about her souL I was requested to 
visit her. After explaining the plan of salvation to her (though 
belonging to the Church of England, she had a Methodist hymn- 
book in the house), I repeated this hymn to her, and requested 
her to let the servant read it to her. She got several of the 
verses off by heart, and died most happy. On another occasion, 
I was called to visit a man dying of cancer in the throat ; the 
same plan as already mentioned was adopted. I requested his 
wife to read that hymn to him ; he found peace while it was 
being read, and died happy." 

The missionary goes on to remark : " I do not think it pos- 
sible for any sincere person to read or sing that hymn without 
profit. There is in it direct reference to the Trinity, and the 
apparent office of each — the intercession of Christ, the atoning 



Hy. 203.] 



and its Associations. 



129 



blood ; the assistance of the Holy Spirit ; the love of the Father ; 
and in the last verse, the necessary effort of faith made by the 
penitent." May multitudes more realise a sense of pardon in 
the same way ! 

The Rev. T. O. Keysell, when at Bury, in Lancashire, was 
visited by a woman in deep distress of mind. Awakened, and 
terrified by her lost condition as a sinner, thinking herself to be 
mad, she related to the preacher the story of her past life. After 
directing her mind to many very encouraging promises in the 
Word of God, he urged her to fix her mind's eye on the Cruci- 
fied One, and to look especially to the blood of atonement. To 
assist her faith he quoted the verse of this hymn — 

" Five bleeding wounds He bears, 
Received on Calvary ; 
They pour effectual prayers, 
They strongly speak for me, " &c. 

Instead of following the preacher in the recitation, she hurried 
on before him, she knowing the lines. When she said, " They 
strongly speak for me," " Stop ! stop ! " said Mr Keysell ; " they 
strongly speak for whom ?" " For me" replied the seeking soul. 
Divine light burst in upon her mind ; she saw her interest in 
the atonement, and she found redemption in His blood, even 
the forgiveness of her sins. She exclaimed, " Bless the Lord ! 
my load is gone, and I am free ! Oh, what a mercy that I did 
not drown myself ! Thank God ! " 

Hymn 203. — " Glory to God, whose sovereign grace." — For the 
Kingswood Colliers. — Tune, Islington, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 104. It also forms hymn 80 in the " Select Hymns and 
Tunes," the tune chosen for it being Zoar, in W'esle/s " Sacred 
Harmony," 1761, in which place the hymn closes with Bishop 
Ken's doxology, " Praise God, from whom all blessings flow." 

The Kingswood colliers had for many years been a horde of 
lawless foresters, ignorant, depraved, brutal. When Whitefield 
last visited Bristol, before his embarkation for America, he spoke 
of converting the savages in that great western continent ; his 
friends said to him, "What need of going abroad for this? 
Have we not Indians enough at home ? If you want to convert 
Indians, there are colliers enough at Kingswood ! " The preach- 
ing of the Wesleys and Whitefield did result in their conversion, 

1 



130 



The Methodist Hymn-Booh [Hy. 205. 



and in the entire renovation of the whole neighbourhood. This 
hymn is Charles Wesley's triumphant song of thanksgiving that 
the sovereign grace of God had " animated senseless stones ! " 

The original has eleven stanzas, the two last and the doxology 
being omitted. The hymn contains such terms as " senseless 
stones," " reprobates," and " outcasts," as indicating the charac- 
ter of the people of whom he wrote. 

Hymn 204. — " Jesus, Thou soul of all our joys." — The true use of 
Music— Tune, Musician's, 1761. 

It has also the additional title of " I will sing with the Spirit, 
and I will sing with the understanding also." 1 Cor. xiv. 15. 
Charles Wesley's, No. 90 in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii. The best title for this composition would be, the Christian 
Musician's Hymn. It was probably written in connexion with 
an incident in the life of Mr Lampe, a musician of note, who 
first composed tunes to the hymns written by the Wesleys. 

Hymn 205. — " My God, I am Thine, What a comfort divine."— 
For Believers. — Tune, Old German, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i. The original is printed in three-line stanzas, so that each 
verse includes two of the original ones. The sentiment and 
metre of the hymn are in happy accordance. 

Portions of this hymn have been used by many of the Lord's 
people when dying or in trying circumstances. 

Richard Walker, of Colne, was upwards of thirty years a 
useful member of the Methodist Society. His last illness was 
protracted over more than two years, but he had a glorious hope 
of immortality amidst his sufferings. His last words were — 

u ' My God, I am Thine, What a comfort divine, 
What a blessing to know that my Jesus is mine ! ' " 

Mrs Kezia Shepherd, of whom a memoir appears in the 
Methodist Magazine for March 1800, was early brought under 
religious influence. Visiting some friends at Oxford, she was 
introduced to the Methodists. Feeling deep penitence on 
account of her sins, she wept one day as she walked along the 
streets, telling her companion that she mourned for the Friend of 
sinners. They called at a house where several pious persons were 
present, when the state of her mind was readily perceived. One 



Hy. 205.] 



and its Associations. 



of them gave out a hymn ; and whilst they were singing the first 
part of hymn 205 — 

" My God, I am Thine, What a comfort divine, 
What a blessing to know that my Jesus is mine ! " 

the Lord spoke peace to her soul. The assurance of her 
acceptance through Jesus was so strong, that she could hardly 
help crying out aloud, " He is mine ! He is mine ! " She held 
fast her confidence through life ; and in death she dedicated 
her soul to God, by singing entirely through Dr Watts' hymn, 
commencing, " I '11 praise my Maker while I Ve breath." 

Faithful in the service of God and Methodism, Mr J. P. 
Hawkes worth, of Wetherby, Tadcaster, for more than half-a- 
century filled the offices of class-leader, local preacher, steward, 
and trustee. In his last illness he found rest in the atonement 
of Christ, while it yielded peace and comfort to his mind. Shortly 
before he died, with victory in his countenance, he said, " I am 
going home ; in my Father's house are many mansions : 

* My God, I am Thine, What a comfort divine, 
What a blessing to know that my Jesus is mine.' " 

The religious character of Mrs Agnes Douglas, Sutherland, 
was felt in its happy influences in both the United States of 
America, and in Scotland, her native country. She built, 
almost entirely at her own cost, a Methodist chapel in Stirling, 
and a good minister's house, both of which, free of debt, were 
secured to the connexion. She built another good chapel at 
Doune, where, for several years, she supported a minister also. 
She bequeathed ^200 towards building a third chapel for the 
benefit of the colliers at Wallacestone. Her last affliction was 
short, but severe, and she was unable to converse much ; but 
on one occasion, in the midst of extreme suffering, she 
exclaimed — 

" ' My God, I am Thine, What a comfort divine. ' " 

In reply to the last question put to her, she said to her friend, 
" Jesus died for me." 

Early in life Henry Budgett, of Kingswood, was converted 
to God, and united himself to the Methodists. About the yea 
1800, he removed to Kingswood, near Bristol, which was then 
infested by a lawless gang of banditti, whose depredations 
extended far beyond that locality. Mr Budgett undertook the 



132 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 205. 



task of putting down these savage hordes, and aided by two of 
his neighbours and the kind providence of God, he secured to 
the village rest and quietness. His next benevolent work was 
to establish a Sunday-school, which was done on the spot where 
the robbers had their colony ; one of whom became converted, 
and was very zealous in the cause of the Redeemer. Receiving 
evidence from on high that his providential lot had been cast in 
that village, his diligence in business and fervency of spirit 
were rewarded by both temporal and spiritual prosperity. He 
liberally distributed his substance to support the cause of God, 
and served Methodism faithfully as steward, class-leader, local 
preacher, and Sunday-school superintendent. When, through 
illness, he was unable to attend the house of God, he was more 
diligent in his private devotions, and enjoyed greatly the class- 
meeting held in his own house weekly. A short time before he 
died, he sent a message to the members of his class, charging 
them " not to rest with Christ about them, but to have Christ IN 
them, the hope of glory," and repeated, with intense feeling — 

" ' My Jesus to know, And feel His blood flow, 
'Tis life everlasting, 'tis heaven below." 

His last request was, to have Psalm xxiii. read to him, after 
which he calmly fell asleep in Jesus. 

A scene of violence committed on a poor but pious local 
preacher, about the year 1754, was the cause of Bryan Proctor's 
thorough awakening to a sense of his danger as a sinner before 
God. The good man had preached near Harewood, and at the 
close of the sermon, which was from " Ye must be born again/ 1 
the rabble Yorkshiremen dragged their religious adviser several 
times through a pond, till he was all but drowned. That which 
was nearly the physical death of one, proved to be the spiritual 
life of another. Young Proctor took his tale of sorrow home to 
his widowed mother at Pannel, near Harrowgate, who, from that 
time, opened her house to receive the preachers, and for preach- 
ing. Here, soon afterwards, came Christopher Hopper, who, 
after preaching, formed a class of those seriously disposed. Those 
who first joined that class were John Pawson, Richard Burdsall, 
Bryan Proctor, and fourteen others, who formed the first Method- 
ist Society in that neighbourhood. From that time, and for 
about seventy years, Mr Proctor never omitted to receive from 
the preacher himself his quarterly society ticket. For many 



Hy. 205.] 



and its Associations. 



133 



years, Mr Proctor accompanied Richard Burdsall on his 
Sabbath-day preaching excursions. He often said, that the 
business of his life was " to live a godly quiet life." At the end 
of his pilgrimage, he said, " I disputed in my younger days 
whether God did indeed dwell with men on the earth ; but now, 
in my old age (ninety-two), the Lord dwelleth in my heart, and 
I do assuredly enjoy a heaven upon earth." Shortly before he 
died, he said, " The blood of Jesus cleanseth us from all sin : 

* My Jesus to know, And feel His blood flow, 
'Tis life everlasting, 'tis heaven below.' " 

He expired, faintly whispering, " My Jesus, my Jesus, glory, 
glory!" 

A period of bodily suffering in early life became to William 
Robinson, of Cleathorpe, a season of salvation. Recovering 
from a second severe attack of illness, he resolved to seek the 
salvation of his soul, and through the preaching of Mr Thomas 
Edman, about 1750, he found the Lord. His eagerness to see 
the conversion of his father and other relatives induced him to 
give up more lucrative employment, where there were no Method- 
ists, that he might remain under the influences of religion. He 
read the Bible and Wesley's Hymns daily in his family before 
prayer, established and himself conducted a public prayer- 
meeting, and had Methodist preaching in his house for more 
than fifty years. He rejoiced in seeing his father happy in the 
pardoning love of God. His conversion was remarkable. In 
youth the father had a scythe-wound in his knee, which healed, 
leaving him with a stiff knee which had prevented his running 
for forty years. When under conviction of sin, his distress was 
painful, arising from a conviction that he had sinned beyond 
the reach of mercy, and he thought nothing less than a miracle 
could convince him that his sins were pardoned. The Lord 
gave him a double blessing. During his convictions, the knee- 
joint became pliant without any human means being used, and 
on the following Sabbath father and son met after the service 
at Grimsby, and whilst crossing the common, with joyful tears 
he told his son that the Lord had worked a double miracle, by 
speaking peace to his soul and healing his body, and to convince 
his son of its reality, he ran some yards on the common to 
demonstrate the completeness of the cure. They rejoiced to- 
gether at the mercy and goodness of God. William, in his last 



134 



The Methodist Hyjnn-Book [Hy. 206. 



illness, exhorted all around him to turn to the Lord. While 

unable to rest, he lay in bed repeating — 

" i My Jesus to know, And feel His blood flow, 
'Tis life everlasting, 'tis heaven below. 
Yet onward we haste To the heavenly feast : 
That, that is the fulness ; this is but the taste' 99 

Shortly afterwards his spirit entered the port in full sail. 

At the early age of twenty-four, William Gibson, of Braith- 
waite Green, Kendal, gave his heart to the Lord, and became a 
zealous and successful class-leader and local preacher to the 
end of his life. In his last illness his experience was clear and 
deep, resting alone on the merits of the Redeemer. To the 
vicar and curate of the village, who took pleasure in visiting 
him, he often said, " I am on the Rock of ages." His last words 
were— • 

" 1 My Jesus to know, And feel His blood flow, 
'Tis life everlasting, 'tis heaven below.' " 

Whilst engaged in his work at the mill, Christopher Chap- 
man, of Knaresborough, sought and found the Lord. His re- 
ligious life was greatly aided by reading the " Spiritual Letters 
and Christian Experience 7 ' of Hester Ann Rogers. His last 
illness was long and painful. His last night on earth was spent 
entirely in prayer, in praise, in reading the Word of God, and 
verses of hymns. Just before he died, he whispered — 

(i ' My Jesus to know, And feel His blood flow, 
'Tis life everlasting, 'tis heaven below f " 

and while praying, " Lord, save me to the end," he fell asleep 
in Jesus. 

- Hymn 206.— "What am I, O Thou glorious God I"— For Be- 
lievers. — Tune, Sheffield, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 114 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The poet seems to base part of this hymn 
on 2 Sam. vii. 18, and Ezek. xvi. 6. 

In early life, the mind of the Rev. Joseph Agar, of York, was 
wrought upon by divine influences ; but at the age of twenty- 
one, he gave his heart fully to the Lord, became an exhorter, 
and shortly afterwards was admitted into the full ministry of 
Methodism. He was a man of much usefulness, of overflowing 
kindness of heart, great simplicity and integrity of purpose, and 



Hy. 209.] 



and its Associations, 



I3S 



of unquenchable ardour for the promotion of the glory of God 
and the salvation of souls. He lived a life of faith on the Son 
of God, and in his last illness delighted to dwell on the goodness 
of God in early life, especially in giving him parents who brought 
him up in the fear of the Lord. He often expressed his grateful 
feelings in the verse — 

" What am I, O Thou glorious God ! 

And what my father's house to Thee, 
That Thou such mercies hast bestow' d 

On me, the vilest reptile, me ? 
I take the blessing from above, 
And wonder at Thy boundless love." 

Thus serenely he waited the closing scene, saying, just before 
his departure to heaven, " Pray for me, praise for me ; Jesus 
comforts me. Sing, sing aloud, I cannot." 

Hymn 207. — " Jesus is our common Lord." — Receiving a Chris- 
tian Friend. — Tune, Hotham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 157. The original has four verses, the first and second 
being left out. The first line is as follows : — " Welcome, friend, 
in that great name." 

Hymn 208. — " Come, let us, who in Christ believe." — On God's 
Everlasting Love. — Tune, Cornish, 1761. 

Forms No. 8 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns on God's Ever- 
lasting Love," 1 74 1. The original has fourteen verses, of which 
ten are omitted. 

Hymn 209. — "Thou hidden Source of calm repose.'' — For Be- 
lievers. — Tune, Birmingham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 143 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The poet's idea in this hymn is to exalt 
Christ, and he selects various circumstances in life, which he 
gives in striking antitheses, to set this forth. Christ is the 
Christian's rest in toil, his ease in pain, his peace in war, his 
gain in loss, his liberty in bondage, and, last of all, comes this 
marvellous climax — his heaven in hell ! This cannot be taken 
as it is literally expressed ; it is a poet's license with language, 
which requires to be received in a careful and modified sense. 



136 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 209. 



The Rev. Samuel Coley has related, that a gentleman of large 
business transactions was known for his great spirituality of 
mind, and was once asked by a friend how he was enabled to 
preserve such a frame. He replied, " By making Christ all in 
all." After a time, he sustained heavy losses in a commercial 
crisis, when his friend again asked him how he still maintained 
his cheerfulness and buoyancy. He replied," By finding myall 
in Christ." 

During a revival in the Pateley-Bridge circuit, Sarah Hark- 
ness, at the age of fifteen, was enabled to believe in Christ for 
salvation. From that time her love to Christ was manifest 
throughout life. In her last illness she was dead indeed to the 
world ; but even in pain she rejoiced in God. When her end 
was near, her husband repeated the second verse of Hymn 209, 
" Thy mighty Name salvation is," &c. She cried out, " Salva- 
tion ! glory ! praise Him ! bless Him ! " She continued in 
this happy strain of exultation till she entered on the beatific 
vision. 

Gentle, kind, generous, sincere, faithful, and intelligent, 
Elizabeth Mary Ash, eldest daughter of the Rev. William Ash, 
in very early life gave her heart to the Lord, and devotedly pro- 
moted the interests of Methodism. When unable to teach by 
her voice, she wrote her counsels to the young in Wesleyan 
periodicals, under the signature of H. Y. H. In her last illness 
she rested entirely on the atonement made by Christ ; and 
almost the last words she spoke were part of a favourite hymn — 
" Jesus, my all in all Thou art, 

My rest in toil, my ease in pain," &c. 

Awakened to a sense of sin at the age of twenty, Mary 
Reynolds attended a watch-night service held in 1801, and, 
about the midnight hour, it pleased the Lord to reveal His Son 
in her heart, and fill her with joy and peace in believing. 
From that time, and through a long life as the wife of the Rev. 
John Reynolds, she " walked with God." She was much 
devoted to works of piety and benevolence, and as a class- 
leader was faithful and affectionate. Her last illness was 
short, but she patiently waited the coming of her Lord ; and 
the last words she was heard to speak were those by Charles 
Wesley — 

" Jesus, my all in all Thou art, 

My rest in toil, my ease in pain," &c. 



Hy. 213.] and its Associations. 



137 



Hymn 210. — " Thee will I love, my strength, my tower." — 
Gratitude for otir Conversion. — Tune, Frankfort, 1761. 

Translated from the German of John Angelus, 1657, by John 
Wesley, and found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a g e 
198. The poet's theme seems that of David in Psalm xviii. 1, 2. 

As early as the age of ten years, Mary Joyce, of Tonge, 
Ashby-de-la-Zouch, joined the Methodist Society, having been 
taught the way of truth by the preachers who visited her father's 
house. A long life of unassuming usefulness was crowned by 
a peaceful end. On the day before her death, she dwelt much 
on this verse — 

11 I thank Thee, uncreated Sun, 

That Thy bright beams on me have shined ; 

I thank Thee, who hast overthrown 

My foes, and heal'd my wounded mind ; 

I thank Thee, whose enlivening voice, 

Bids my freed heart in Thee rejoice." 

Hymn 211. — " Let all men rejoice, By Jesus restored." — For 
the Kingswood Colliers. — Tune, Newcastle, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 184. 

Hymn 212. — " My brethren beloved, Your calling ye see." — For 
the Kingswood Colliers. — Tune, Triumph, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, No. 185, in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. ii. The second verse of the original is omitted. 

Hymn 213.*—" My God, the spring of all my joys."— God's Pre- 
sence is Light in Darkness. — Tune, Leeds, 1761. 

Dr Watts', from Book ii., Hymn 54, date 1707. Several im- 
provements have been made in it, and it has been added to the 
collection during the present century. In the 1 8th edition, 1805, 
it formed Hymn 87, with an asterisk. 

"This hymn," says Milner, in his "Life of Watts," "is almost 
without spot or blemish," if we except the last line of verse 4, 
which was amended by John Wesley. " T embrace my dearest 
Lord," wrote Watts. Wesley made other improvements in the 
hymn, which are generally adopted. An able critic in the 



138 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 213. 

" Wesleyan Methodist Magazine H says of this hymn, that " it is 
the very best Watts wrote, and breathes the intense ear- 
nestness, and passionate, kindling fervour of Wesley himself. 
It is an effusion of irrepressible joy and triumphant faith." 

Every verse of this hymn, and almost every line, has been a 
source of comfort and joy to some suffering Christian. Sarah 
Bickerton was made a partaker of saving grace at the age of 
twenty, and during a long and terribly severe illness, whilst 
residing at Compstall Bridge, New Mills, she bowed in humility 
to the Divine will — saying of her Heavenly Father, " For all, 
I bless Thee, most for the severe." Her end was triumphant. 
She requested those around her bed to sing the hymn begin- 
ning— 

" My God, the spring of all my joys," &c. 

in which she joined with all her might, often repeating — 

" The wings of love, and arms of faith, 
Will bear me conqu'ror through.' ' 

From a child, John Dewhurst, of Mytholmroyd, Todmorden, 
was under the influence of the drawings of the Holy Spirit, and 
at the age of seventeen he received a clear sense of pardon, and 
joined the Methodist Society. The confidence in God he now 
realised he never lost to the day of his death. To his class he 
was much attached ; as a prayer-leader and Sunday-school 
teacher he was diligent. At an early period of life he was 
called away to heaven ; but in his sufferings his face beamed 
with joy, and his heart was joyful and happy. In the last 
hour of life he began to sing — 

" My God, the spring of all my joys, 
The life of my delights, 
The glory of my brightest days, 
And comfort of my nights ! " 

He then added, " Glory be to God : come Lord Jesus ! " and 
peacefully entered into rest. 

The erection of the first Methodist Chapel at Farnley, near 
Leeds, was mainly due to the efforts put forth by Mr Thomas 
Pawson, a churchman, who, seeing the prosperity of the cause 
under his fostering care, was induced to join the Society, and 
ultimately became a useful class-leader, serving the Lord and 
Methodism with fidelity for more than thirty years. On the 



Hy. 213.] 



and its Associations. 



139 



day before his death he said, " I bless God I am happy and 
comfortable ; M and added — 

" ' In darkest shades, if Thou appear, 
My dawning is begun : 
Thou art my soul's bright morning star, 
And Thou my rising sun/ " 

He afterwards said, " I have strong confidence ; worthy is the 
Lamb ! " and then entered into rest. 

During a period of nearly forty years, Mrs Batho, of Whit- 
church, Salop, welcomed the visits of the Methodist preachers, 
till one was located in the place. She lived to see a prosperous 
Society rise from small beginnings. She suffered much in her 
last illness, but she was enabled to " Shout victory through the 
blood of the Lamb." Nearly her last words were — 

" The opening heavens around me shine, 
With beams of sacred bliss, 
If Jesus shows His mercy mine, 
And whispers, I am His." 

" Them that honour me I will honour," was never more re- 
markably manifested than in the case of Mr John Lofthouse, 
of Sheffield. Beginning to meet in class as a youth, he resolved 
to find out what were the joys of the people of God ; and he 
soon realised his determination. On removing to London, 
his first concern was to secure the privilege of class-meeting, 
and this he did by meeting with Mr Butterworth, M.P., as leader 
in a Sunday-morning class, at seven o'clock. His earnest, con- 
sistent piety, at Rotherham and Sheffield, for some years endeared 
him to the people of God. In his last illness, he was exceed- 
ingly happy. During the night before his death, remembering 
that an American physician had expressed an opinion that sing- 
ing may greatly soothe the dying, the third and fourth verses of 
Hymn 213 were sung, and verses 38, 39, of Romans viii. were 
read, which roused the dying energy of the man of God, who 
cried out, " My soul takes hold of these truths, and triumphs 
through them. Glory be to God ! * He spoke no more, but, 
just as the Rev. George Mather was offering a brief prayer, 
he breathed out his spirit to God. 

Sarah Vasey received a conscious sense of sins forgiven in 
her twentieth year, and diligently attended the means of grace, till 
a long affliction overtookher, during which she was very severely 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 214. 



tried. The reading of the Beatitudes in St Matthew's Gospel 
broke the power of the tempter, and she exclaimed, in a trans- 
port of holy joy, " Call the children up, let us join together to 
praise the Lord " — 

" Fearless of hell and ghastly death, 
I 'd break through every foe ; 
The wings of love, and arms of faith, 
Would bear me conqu'ror through. ' 99 

Hymn 214. — "Talk with us, Lord, Thyself reveal."— 6>/z a 
Jotirney. — Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1740, 
page 127. The first verse is left out ; it commences, " Saviour, 
who ready art to hear." The original is written in the first per- 
son, thus — " Talk with me, Lord," &c. ; which John Wesley 
has altered to the plural — " Talk with us, Lord," &c. 

The idea and sentiment conveyed in the second verse are 
borrowed from Milton, who represents Eve as saying, in one of 
her addresses to Adam — 

* 1 With thee conversing, I forget all time, 
All seasons and their change ; all please alike." 

But how is the sentiment elevated and dignified when Christian 
believers are taught, in approaching their Heavenly Father, to 
say — 

" With Thee conversing, we forget 
All time, and toil, and care ; 
Labour is rest, and pain is sweet, 
If Thou, my God, art here." 

In the " Life of Dr Payson," we read that [when the last sands 
were running out of the glass of Time, he said, " I have been 
ready to doubt whether pain be really an evil ; for though more 
pain was crowded into last week than any other week of my life, 
yet it was one of the happiest weeks I ever spent. And now I 
am ready to say, Come sickness, pain, agony, poverty, loss of 
friends; only let God come with them, and they shall be 
welcome." — (Life, p. 344.) 

In very early life, Ann Pool, of Wakefield, was under the 
influence of the Divine Spirit, and whilst yet young she began 
to meet in her mother's class. Having given her heart to the 
Lord, she never regretted the choice she had made. She was 



Hy. 216.] 



and its Associations. 



Hi 



much tried during her last illness, but she had enduring peace 
and joy ; and only an hour before her death she said, "Jesus is 
precious ; He loves me." After that, when labouring under 
severe pain, she exclaimed — 

" ' Labour is rest, and pain is sweet, 
If Thou, my God, art here.' " 

Several hymns having been read to her relating to the merits of 
the Saviour and the happiness of heaven, she then began to 
pray, and in that happy frame she fell asleep in Jesus. 

One of the native Wesleyan ministers of Sierra Leone, Rev. 
George Harding Decker, was first brought to a knowledge of 
sins forgiven through the preaching of the Methodists in Free- 
town in 1836. His intelligence and piety soon recommended 
him for service in the Church, and he was appointed an assist- 
ant missionary. In this capacity he was untiring in his efforts 
to do good, and unsparing in his labours, which brought on 
cold and illness, and these soon terminated in death. To an 
inquiry as to his having a clear manifestation of Divine love, he 
replied he had that assurance. " I could not have preached 
the gospel so long and not be assured of this. Yes, I feel — 

' Labour is rest, and pain is sweet, 
If Thou, my God, art here.' 

I feel that God is love, and that He has loved me, and that if I 
die at this moment, I shall die in the Lord. He is my rock and 
shield." A few hours afterwards his spirit went to God. 

Hymn 215. — " Glorious Saviour of my soul." — On God's Ever- 
lasting Love. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 6 of his " Hymns on God's 
Everlasting Love," 1741. The original has seven verses, three 
of which are omitted. It was inserted by Mr Wesley in the 
Arminian Magazine. Mr Bunting suggests the changing of the 
first word in verse 4 from "yet" to "now." 

Hymn 216.—-" Infinite, unexhausted Love." — After a Recovery. 
— Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 92 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i., where it extends to eighteen verses, the 
first eight and the tenth being left out. The first line of the 
original is, " O what an evil heart have I ! " 



142 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 219. 



Hymn 217. — "Jesus, to Thee I now can fly." — After a Relapse 
into Sin. — Tune, Morning Song, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 141. The original has ten verses, the first five and the 
seventh being omitted. 

The Rev. F. W. Briggs, in a brief biography of Mrs Maria 
Fernly, of Manchester, who died at Stockport, says that, though 
her sufferings were extremely severe, yet she retained clearness 
and collectedness of mind, and found much comfort in repeating 
portions of Scripture and verses of hymns. Those plaintive lines 
of Charles Wesley's, "In age and feebleness extreme," &c, were 
in her constant recollection, and also the last verse of Hymn 217 — 
" Jesus, my Strength, my Life, my Rest, 
On Thee will I depend, 
Till summon'd to the marriage-feast, 
When faith in sight shall end." 

Hymn 218. — " See how great a flame aspires." — After Preach- 
ing to the Newcastle Colliers. — Tune, Magdalen, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, and forms No. 199 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. There are in the volume four hymns 
under this title, this being the fourth. It was written as an 
evidence of thanksgiving to God for the success of the gospel 
amongst the colliers of the North. The imagery of the first 
verse was suggested by the furnace-blasts and burning pit-heaps 
which even now are scattered thickly over the district for some 
miles around Newcastle-on-Tyne, and which illuminate the 
whole neighbourhood. In the last verse allusion is made to the 
prophet Elijah and the coming rain (1 Kings xviii. 44, 45). 

The imagery of the poet in this hymn is so exceedingly 
characteristic of the spread of vital religion, that it has become 
a favourite at missionary services in other Churches besides 
Methodist ones. 

Hymn 219. — "All thanks be to God." — Thanksgiving for the 
Success of the Gospel. — Tune, Derby, 178 1. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 3 in " Redemption Hymns." 
The original has eight verses, the fourth being left out. 

Gwennap, in Cornwall, is a place made famous by the suc- 
cessful preaching of the Wesleys in the famous amphitheatre—- 



HY. 220.] 



and its Associations. 



143 



a circular green hollow, covering a surface of fourscore square 
yards, gently sloping down about fifty feet deep, and known as 
the Gwennap Pit. Here the two founders of Methodism 
preached often to immense multitudes, once to twenty-five 
thousand persons. On one occasion, after Charles Wesley had 
preached at Gwennap, in July 1744, such blessed results fol- 
lowed that he commemorated the incident by a dialogue hymn, 
entitled " Naomi and Ruth ; adapted to the Minister and the 
People." In August 1746, Charles Wesley paid his last visit to 
that memorable locality, where he " found at least five thousand 
miners waiting for the glad tidings of salvation.'' " On Sunday, 
August 10," writes Charles Wesley, in his journal, " for nearly 
two hours nine or ten thousand, by computation, listened with 
all eagerness," while he commended them to God and to the 
word of His grace. " Never," he continues, " had we so 
large an infusion of the Holy Spirit as in the Society. I 
could not doubt at that time either their perseverance or my 
own." The next day, August 11, 1746, he joyfully surveyed the 
glorious progress of his labours in that deeply interesting 
locality, and expressed his gratitude of heart in the hymn of 
thanksgiving commencing — 

"All thanks be to God, 
Who scatters abroad," &c. 

HYMN 220. — " All glory to God in the sky."— The Nativity. — 
Tune, Thou Shepherd of Israel, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 18 in " Hymns for the Na- 
tivity of our Lord." This hymn is a fine poetical picture of the 
results of Christianity as foretold in Isaiah xxxii. 17 — the effects 
of righteousness being quietness and assurance for ever. John 
Wesley said this was the best of his brother's Nativity hymns, 
The metre is appropriate, and the diction of the hymn is smooth 
and harmonious. 

For thirty years George Fowler, farmer, Gunhouse, near 
Ep worth, lived according to the fashion of this world. In 1800 
he was prevailed upon to attend a Methodist service, held in a 
cottage, on Christmas-day, at Scotton. On hearing the hymn 
given out — 

" All glory to God in the sky," &c, 

his attention was arrested, his convictions for sin deepened to 
sincere repentance ; he saw the way of salvation, believed, 



144 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 223. 



obtained pardon, and was made happy in God. The change 
was entire and abiding, and for more than thirty years he 
maintained his confidence in God, and died happy. 

Hymn 221. — " Meet and right it is to sing/ — For the Watch- 
night. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 97 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1749, vol. ii. The second verse of Hymn 221 is similar 
in idea to the second verse of Hymn 316, by Dr Watts, memor- 
able as the last words of the late Rev. Dr Joseph Beaumont. 

Hymn 222. — "How happy, gracious Lord! are we." — For the 
Watch-night. — Tune, Snowsfields, 1 761 . 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 96 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1749, vol. ii. The language used by the poet in this 
and the preceding hymn is peculiarly appropriate to the occa- 
sion for which they were written. 

Hymn 223. — u When Israel out of Egypt came." — Psalm cxiv. 
—Tune, Sheffield, 1761. 

This is Charles Wesley's version of Psalm cxiv., found in a 
" Collection of Psalms and Hymns," published by John and 
Charles Wesley, second edition, page 109, date 1743 ; and also in 
Charles W T esley's version of the Psalms by H. Fish. Mr Bunting 
suggests the changing of the word " rod' 5 to " nod," at the end of 
line six, verse four. It has been wrongly attributed to Addison 
and to Andrew Marvell. Dr Watts commences his version of 
this psalm in similar language : — 

" When Israel, freed from Pharaoh's hand, 
Left the proud tyrant and his land. " 
When these notes first appeared in the " Methodist Recorder/ 
Mr Stelfox, of Belfast, supplied to that paper the following 
additional information. In a collection of hymns prepared for 
the use of the United Methodist Free Churches, edited by the 
Rev. James Everett, this psalm is assigned to Addison, though 
it is undoubtedly Charles Wesley's. Mr Stelfox thus pro- 
ceeds : — " In No. 461 of the 'Spectator' there is given one of 
several versions of this psalm, and this, probably, was the occa- 
sion of Mr Everett's mistake ; especially as the two first words, 
1 When Israel/ are in both versions. But even the hymn in the 
' Spectator' is not Addison's, but Dr Watts'. It is somewhat 



Hy. 223.] 



and its Associations. 



145 



remarkable that Milton has given two renderings of the same 
psalm, one English, one Greek. I will just set down the English 
version (made when the author was fifteen), and that of Dr 
Watts 

" Milton. 

" ' When the blest seed of Terah's faithful son, 
After long toil their liberty had won, 
And past from Pharian fields to Canaan land, 
Led by the strength of the Almighty's hand ; 
Jehovah's wonders were in Israel shown, 
His praise and glory was in Israel known. 
That saw the troubled sea, and shivering fled, 
And sought to hide his froth-becurled head 
Low in the earth ; Jordan's clear streams recoil, 
As a faint host that hath received the foil. 
The high huge-bellied mountains skip, like rams 
Amongst their ewes ; the little hills, like lambs. 
Why fled the ocean ? And why skipt the mountains ? 
Why turned Jordan toward his crystal fountains ? 
Shake earth ; and at the presence be aghast 
Of Him that ever was, and aye shall last ; 
That glassy floods from rugged rocks can crush, 
And make soft rills from fiery flint- stones gush.' 

"Dr Watts. 

u 4 When Israel, freed from Pharaoh's hand, 
Left the proud tyrant and his land ; 
Their tribes with cheerful homage own 
Their king, and Judah was His throne. 

Across the deep their journey lay ; 
The deep divides to make them way ; 
Jordan beheld their march, and fled 
With backward current to his head. 

The mountains shook like frighted sheep, 
Like Lambs the little hillocks leap ; 
Not Sinai on her base could stand, 
Conscious of sovereign power at hand. 

What power could make the deep divide r 
Make Jordan backward roll his tide ? 
Why did ye leap, ye little hills? 
And whence the fright that Sinai feels ? 

K 



146 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 224. 



Let every mountain, every flood 
Retire, and know the approaching God, 
The king of Israel : see Him here ! 
Tremble, thou earth, adore and fear. 

He thunders, and all nature mourns, 
The rock to standing pools He turns ; 
Flints spring with fountains at His word, 
And fires and seas confess the Lord/ " 

Hymn 224. — " I ? 11 praise my Maker while I've breath." — Praise 
to God for His Goodness, — Tune, 113th Psalm, 1761. 

This memorable composition forms Dr Watts' version of 
Psalm cxlvi., published 1719. The original has six verses, the 
second and third being omitted. The first line John Wesley 
has altered from u I ? 11 praise my Maker with my breath and 
verse three in the original reads thus : — 

" The Lord hath eyes to give the blind, 
The Lord supports the sinking mind." 

These and other judicious alterations made by John Wesley 
add much to the value of the hymn. The thought of the 
poet in the third verse seems to be borrowed from Pope's 
" Messiah"— 

" All ye blind, behold ! 
He from thick films shall purge the visual ray, 
And on the sightless eyeballs pour the day." 

The venerable founder of Methodism died in great peace. On 
Monday, February 28, 1 791, he was exceedingly weak, slept much, 
and spoke but little. On Tuesday morning, he sang two verses 
of a hymn, then, lying still, as if to recover strength, he called 
for pen and ink, but could not write. Miss Ritchie proposed to 
write for him, and asked what to say. He replied, " Nothing, 
but that God is with us." In the forenoon he said, " I will get 
up." While they were preparing his clothes, he broke out in a 
manner that astonished all who were about him in singing — 

" I '11 praise my Maker while I Ve breath : 
And when my voice is lost in death, 

Praise shall employ my nobler powers ; 
My days of praise shall ne'er be past, 
While life, and thought, and being last, 

Or immortality endures." 



Hy. 226.] 



and its Associations. 



147 



Having finished the verse, and got him into his chair, they 
observed him change for death. But he, regardless of his dying 
body, said with a weak voice, M Lord, Thou givest strength ; 
speak to all our hearts, and let them know that Thou loosest 
tongues." He then sung one of his brother's doxologies :— 

" To Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, 
Who sweetly all agree." 

Here his voice failed. After gasping for breath he said, " Now, 
we have done all." He was then laid on the bed, from which 
he rose no more. Later in the day he tried again to speak, and 
with all his remaining strength said, " The best of all is, God is 
with us." During the night following, and early on Wednesday 
morning, March 2, he often attempted to repeat Dr Watts' 
Psalm cxlvi., but could only get out — 

" I '11 praise ; I '11 praise." 

His end drew near. His old and faithful friend, Joseph Brad- 
ford, now prayed with him ; and the last word he was heard 
to articulate was " Farewell" A few minutes before ten o'clock 
on Wednesday morning, March 2, 1791, while a number of 
friends were kneeling round his bed, died John Wesley, without 
a groan, in his eighty-eighth year. 

The interest which attaches to this composition, from the cir- 
cumstances just related, has caused its use by many saints 
departing hence, allusions to some of whom will be found in the 
Index. 

Hymn 225. — "Praise ye the Lord! 'tis good to raise." — The 
Divine Nature, Providence, and Grace. — Tune, Kettlesby's, 
1761. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm cxlvii., from Wesley's "Collection 
of Psalms and Hymns," third edition, 1743. The original has 
eight verses, the second and fourth being omitted. 

Hymn 226. — " Eternal Wisdom ! Thee we praise." — Song to 
Creating Wisdom. — Tune, Hallelujah, 1761. 

Dr Watts', from "Horse Lyricse," 1705. It is found in Wesley's 
"Collection of Psalms and Hymns," third edition, 1743, where 
it appears with some of John Wesley's judicious alterations. 
Four verses of the original are omitted. 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 227. 



Hymn 227. — " How do Thy mercies close me round I" — At 
lying down. — TUNE, Evesham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 129. The original has ten verses, the three last being 
omitted. The language of this hymn adapts it especially for 
singing at the close of the day. 

Converted to God at the age of twenty, Mrs Hunter, of Bar- 
ton-on-Humber, zealously sought to bring others to a know- 
ledge of Christ. She was meek, consistent, and earnest ; given 
to hospitality, a lover of the sanctuary and of the Lord's people. 
In her last illness, and when recovery was hopeless, she spoke 
much of her mercies, often repeating — 

" How do Thy mercies close me round ! 
For ever be Thy name adored ; 
I blush in all things to abound ; 
The servant is above his Lord !" 

She died very happy, a " mother in Israel." 

As early as the age of sixteen, Mrs Bush, of Bath, joined the 
Methodist Society, and remained an exemplary member for fifty- 
nine years. Gratitude, humility, and anxiety for the welfare 
of others characterised her long Christian course. In her last 
illness she was subject to much suffering, weakness, and con- 
flict, but she enjoyed much of the Saviour's love ; and in the 
face of her spiritual foes, when her lips were trembling, her 
friends were rejoiced to hear her exclaim — 

"Jesus protects ; my fears, begone ! 
What can the Rock of Ages move? 
Safe in Thy arms I lay me down, 
Thy everlasting arms of love." 

Her faith was vigorous, and her prospect clear as she entered 
the Canaan of rest. 

The conversion of Samuel Scholes, of Higher-Moor, near 
Oldham, occurred in this wise. In the year 1777^ being in his 
garden on a Sunday viewing his flowers, an earthquake occurred. 
This convulsion so alarmed his fears that he ran into the house 
for his Prayer-Book, and read from the Litany, " From lightning 
and tempest ; from plague, pestilence, and famine ; from battle 
and murder, and from sudden death — Good Lord, deliver us." 
Through the same occurrence his wife also became convinced 



Hy. 228.] and its Associations. 



149 



of sin. Both joined the Methodist Society, and soon afterwards 
they found peace with God. Samuel was made a class-leader, 
and during fifty-three years all the members of his class who 
departed this life died happy. During a severe illness he main- 
tained his peace with God, and when recovering from a sharp 
paroxysm, addressing himself to his Heavenly Father, he said — 

" Me for Thine own thou lov'st to take, 
In time and in eternity : 
Thou never, never wilt forsake 
A helpless worm that trusts in Thee." 

On the day following he departed in great peace. 

The influence of early parental instruction, example, and 
prayer, under the Divine blessing, was evinced by the conversion 
to God of Hannah Kitson, at the age of eighteen, and she 
joined the class of her father, Mr Kitson of Wakefield. From 
that period till the time of her death her piety was manifest in 
all the duties of life. She was afterwards married to the Rev. 
William Vevers. Owing to the excitement attending the Leeds 
Conference of 1837, her residence being at the Conference Chapel 
House, an attack of paralysis seized her, which was followed 
by others, but during her sufferings her mind was unclouded, 
and her spirit was at peace. Her father, at the age of eighty- 
four, took to his bed on the same day as Mrs Vevers, and sur- 
vived her only a few days. On hearing of his illness, she said, 
" Tell my father and sister I die happy." A few hours before 
her death, after a night of restlessness, she sweetly said, " He 
will lay no more upon me than he will enable me to bear. 

4 He never, never will forsake 

A helpless soul that trusts in Him.' " 

Shortly afterwards she breathed her spirit in great tran- 
quillity into the hands of her Saviour. 

Hymn 228.*—" Thou Shepherd of Israel, and mine."—" Tell me, 
O Thou, whom my soul lovethP — Tune, Thou Shepherd 
of Israel, 1761. 

Forms No. 931 of Charles Wesley's "Short Scripture 
Hymns/' vol. i. It is a rich evangelical exposition and applica- 
tion of Solomon's Song i. 7. This was added in the year 1797. 

Mrs Wilson, of Waterford, received the evidence of her 
adoption into the family of God whilst reading Isaiah vi. in her 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[ Hy. 229. 



closet at the age of eighteen. While reading " Thy iniquity is 
taken away, and thy sin is purged," she was " filled with joy and 
peace in believing. " She became a useful Christian ; and, as 
the mother of a large family, saw her eldest son engaged as a 
local preacher at the age of nineteen, and five of her daughters 
in early life converted to God, who met with her in the same 
class. She lived to enjoy that " perfect love" which casteth out 
fear. The day before her death she prayed with each of her 
children, and to the physician and parish clergyman who visited 
her she spoke with earnestness on the preciousness of Christ, 
and frequently repeated the hymn commencing — 

" Thou Shepherd of Israel, and mine, 
The joy and desire of my heart ; 
For closer communion I pine, 
I long to reside where Thou art." 

On one occasion, after repeating this hymn, Mr Doolittle 
engaged in prayer, after which she said, " The enemy is kept far 
from me ; thanks be to God, who giveth me the victory." 
Whilst repeating " Victory through the blood of the Lamb/' she 
entered into rest. 

Hymn 229.—" God of my life, to Thee."— On his Birthday.-— 
Tune, Miss Edwins, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 123 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The fifth verse of the original is left out. 

The singular idea in the last two lines is founded on a tradi- 
tion amongst the Jews, that the Almighty drew the soul or 
spirit of Moses out of his body by a kiss. Dr Watts, in his lyric 
poem on the death of Moses, gives the same idea thus — 

" Softly his fainting head he lay 
Upon his Maker's breast ; 
His Maker kissed his soul away 
And laid his flesh to rest." 

The opinion thus conveyed is Jewish rather than Christian in 
its character, and is delicate, touching, and sublime in its 
phraseology. 

As early as her thirteenth year, Mary Hardy, of Duffield, 
Derby, afterwards of Falcon Street, London, was convinced of 
sin under a sermon preached by the Rev. Mr Gill, of Matlock, 
and soon afterwards she entered into full liberty from sin. Her 



Hy. 231.] 



and its Associations. 



love of the world was now changed for love to the Scriptures, 
the services of the Sanctuary, and the people of God ; and she 
became a zealous Sunday-school teacher and collector for the 
cause of God. Happy in her marriage, she adorned her godly 
profession by a useful Christian life, and lived to realise the 
blessing of entire sanctification. During a brief illness she 
found Christ to be precious, and delighted in repeating some 
favourite hymns, especially the lines — 

" Then when the work is done, 
The work of faith with power ; 
Like Moses, to Thyself convey, 
And kiss my raptured soul away." 

Her last words were — "Angels wait to convey me to glory. 
Very happy ! " and thus she peacefully entered into rest. 

Hymn 230. — "Fountain of life and all my joy/' — On his 
Birthday.—TVNE, Whitsunday, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 122. The original has ten verses, the first three and three 
others being left out. It was written December 18, 1741, and 
in the omitted verses the poet alludes to that singular desire 
for death which has found its way into many of his early 
effusions. 

Hymn 231. — " Away with our fears ! The glad morning appears." 
— On his Birthday. — Tune, Builth, 1761. 
Forms No. 191 in Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The original is in fourteen six-line 
stanzas. In the first line, " my fears " is altered to " our fears." 
Two verses are left out. Some of the lines are strikingly ap- 
propriate to the founder of Methodism. Few persons besides 
the brothers Wesley could say of friends what Charles Wesley 
says in one of the omitted verses : — 

" How rich in the friends Thy providence sends 
To help my infirmity on ! 
What a number I see Who could suffer for me, 
And ransom my life with their own J" 

Forty-two years after this hymn was written, and after the poet 
had entered the realms of the blessed, John Wesley made this 
affecting reference to this hymn: "I this day (June 17, 1788) 



1 5 2 The Methodist Hymn-Book H Y. 231.] 



enter on my eighty-fifth year ; and what cause have I to praise 
God, as for a thousand spiritual blessings, so for bodily blessings 
also ! How little have I suffered yet by the rush of numerous 
years ! . . . Even now, though I find daily pain in my eye, or 
temple, or arm, yet it is never violent, and seldom lasts many 
minutes at a time. Whether or not this is sent to give me 
warning that I am shortly to quit this tabernacle, I do not 
know ; but, be it one way or the other, I have only to say — 

* My remnant of days I spend in His praise, 
Who died the whole world to redeem : 
My days are His due, Be they many or few, 
And they all are devoted to Him. , " 

Fifty years' labour as a Methodist preacher during the last 
century, and five of them passed in travelling the almost un- 
trodden wilds of America, as a pioneer missionary and superin- 
tendent, prior to 1780, represents an amount of toil and service 
of which few in these days can have any knowledge. Such a 
career was that of the Rev. Thomas Rankin. The whip which 
accompanied the good man during his five years' journeyings in 
America on horseback, has long been a treasured relic belong- 
ing to the author of these notes. His zeal for the glory of God, 
and his love to souls, suffered no abatement during a long life : 
he continued to preach with much acceptance and profit to 
the close of his days. During his last illness he said to a friend, 
" I did not immediately join the Methodists when awakened and 
converted ; I hesitated for some time ; but glory be to God that 
He inclined me to cast in my lot among them ! " Then referring 
to one of his favourite hymns, he quoted part of it as expressing 
his feelings and experience at the end of his pilgrimage : — 

6i From Jehovah I came, For His glory I am, 

And to Him I with singing return ; 
***** 

What a mercy is this ! What a heaven of bliss ! 

How unspeakably happy am I ! 
Gathered into the fold, With Thy people enrolled, 
With Thy people to live and to die." 
He lived a long life of honourable usefulness, and died rejoicing 
in God his Saviour, and was buried in City Road Chapel ground; 
his character being sketched at the time of his funeral by three 
Presidents of the Conference, his friends in the ministry, the Rev. 
Walter Griffith, the Rev. Henry Moore, and the Rev. Joseph 



Hy. 24i.] 



and its Associations. 



153 



Benson. Great crowds of people attended at his funeral, and 
to hear the funeral sermon which was preached afterwards. 

Hymn 232. — " Young men and maidens raise." — For Children. 
— Tune, Trumpet, 1761. 

This forms No. 65 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children/' 
and is a spirited paraphrase of Psalm cxlviii. 12, 13. 

Hymn 233. — "Happy man whom God doth aid !" — For Children ^ 
-—Tune, Hotham, 1761. 

Forms No. 18 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children." 

Hymn 234. — " Let all that breathe Jehovah praise." — Fo? 
Children. — Tune, Fulham, 1761. 

Forms No. 90 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children." 

Hymn 235. — " Father of all, whose powerful voice." 

„ 236. — " Son of Thy Sire's eternal love." 

„ 237. — " Eternal, spotless Lamb of God." 
The Lord's Prayer. — Tune, London and Palmis, 1761. 

John Wesley's " Paraphrase of the Lord's Prayer," found in 
"Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, page 275. It possesses all 
the characteristics of the poet's classical pen. It is probably 
the finest paraphrase of that inimitable prayer to be found in 
the English language. 

Hymn 238. — " Meet and right it is to praise." — For a Family. 
— Tune, Ascension, 1761. 

Forms No. 1 1 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns for a Family." 
The original has five verses, the last one being omitted. 

Hymn 239.—" Hail! Father, Son, and Holy Ghost !"— Of God. 
— Tune, Cornish, 1761. 

Forms the first of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children." 

Hymn 240.—" O God, Thou bottomless abyss ! " 

„ 241. — " Thou, true and only God, lead'st forth/'- 
Gods Greatness. — Tune, Italian, 1761. 

John Wesley's translation from the German of Ernest Lange, 
found in "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a & e Tw0 
lines in the second verse of Part II. are borrowed from Tate 



154 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 245. 



and Brady's version of Psalm ciii. The lines commence " Thy 
wakened wrath," &c. The latter part of the first verse of this 
grand hymn is manifestly not suited for use in public worship. 
This is " an awe-inspiring hymn ; serious without being heavy ; 
bold without being extravagant." Mr Wesley has placed this 
hymn under the sub-title " On the Attributes of God." 

Ernest Lange, the author of this much-admired hymn, was 
born at Danzic, in 1650, where he became magistrate and bur- 
gomaster. In February 171 1, when sixty-one years old, he 
published sixty-one hymns, " to praise the mercy of God," who 
had delivered him from the pestilence which prevailed in 17 10. 
He died at Danzic in 1727. Another translation of the same 
hymn forms No. 183 in the " United Brethren's Hymn-Book." 
Only three of this author's hymns have been put into English. 

Hymn 242. — " Glorious God, accept a heart." — For Children. — 
Tune, Hambleton's, 1761. 

This hymn forms No. 11 of Charles Wesley's "Hymns for 
Children." The expressive importunity of the pleadings in the 
last verse, where the personal pronoun ME is five times repeated, 
demonstrates how natural earnestness becomes true eloquence. 

Hymn 243. — " Thou, my God, art good and wise." — For 
Children. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Forms No. 22 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children." 

Hymn 244. — " Thou, the great, eternal God." 

„ 245. — " Good Thou art, and good Thou dost." 
For Children. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Forms No. 94 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Children." 
The fourth verse of the original is left out, and the fifth verse is 
made the commencement of Hymn 245, which latter has been 
made extensively useful. 

Religious impressions received in the Wesleyan Sunday- 
school, St Nicholas, Margate, led Ann Young to seek the 
Lord, and at the age of fourteen, she became converted, and 
joined the Methodist Society. As a domestic in the family of 
Captain Wood, of Birkenhead, she adorned her profession by 
an humble walk with God. When her end was approaching, 
she expressed her confidence in God, and with all her strength 
she repeated the hymn — 



Hv. 246.] 



arid its Associations. 



6 ' Good Thou art, and good Thou dost, 
Thy mercies reach to all," &c. 

laying particular emphasis on the line, '} Watches every num- 
bered hair." In this calm and resigned state of mind she fell 
asleep in Jesus. 

Mrs Broad, of Sewdley, in the Newent circuit, received her 
first ticket of membership from the Rev. Jonathan Crowther, 
when she was at school. Her joy was unbounded when she 
received the blessing of pardon. When laid aside by illness, 
her last hours were solemnly delightful. She said, " I cannot 
sink, I hang on my Saviour's merits." Bidding her husband 
farewell, she said, " Give your heart to God." She then re- 
peated the verse — 

" Good Thou art, and good Thou dost, 
Thy mercies reach to all," &c. 

" He is mine, and I am His." Her last words were, " Washed 
all my sins away." 

Hymn 246. — " My soul, through my Redeemer's care." — " Thou 
hast delivered my soul from death" &c. — Tune, Stanton, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 858 of "Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., based on Psalm cxvi. 8. 

The mother of the Rev. Oliver Henwood was brought up in 
the Church of England. During the last fifteen years of her 
life she was united to the Methodists, and her solicitude was 
afterwards increased for the salvation of her children, especially 
her son, who became a Wesleyan minister. She passed away 
from earth to heaven, repeating, with difficulty, yet word for 
word — 

u My soul, through my Redeemer's care, 
Saved from the second death, I feel, 
My eyes from tears of dark despair 
My feet from falling into hell." 

It was the privilege of Mrs Barrett, of Hull, mother of the 
Rev. Alfred Barrett, to attend a love-feast held in Norfolk 
Street Chapel, Sheffield, conducted by the late William Bram- 
well. The meeting was conducted in the usual manner for 
some time. "As the meeting was drawing to a close there was 
a pause ; none seemed willing to rise ; and there fell upon the 



1 56 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 246. 



assembly a stillness and an awe as deep as that of the grave. 
Every soul seemed to be absorbed and overwhelmed by the 
influence from above. None desired or dared to break the 
hallowed and awful silence of that hour, but all sat communing 
with heavenly and eternal things, until the preacher arose, and 
said, 4 Now who can say that God is not here V which appeal, 
made with much force and feeling, enabled the assembly to 
relieve themselves by subdued ejaculations and tears." The 
powerful impression produced on the mind of Mrs Barrett never 
wore off ; and, supported as it was by the drawings of the Holy 
Spirit, in early life she was led to join the Methodist Society, when 
she removed to Hull, and there found peace through believing. 
In 1832, she gave up her son to the ministry, to whom she wrote 
frequently letters which indicated a growing in grace, and a 
lively interest in promoting religion. Her last illness was brief. 
Though the valley of suffering was dark, she said, "All is light 
beyond/' Her husband said it was a happy circumstance to be 
able to appropriate the words of the hymn commencing — 

" My soul, through my Redeemer's care, 

Saved from the second death, I feel," &c. 

" Indeed it is," she replied, " and, through the mercy of the 
Redeemer, I have no fear of death." Her faith was triumphant ; 
and shortly afterwards her redeemed spirit fled to paradise. 

The Rev. William Bird, in describing the last hours of Mrs 
Bird on earth (" Methodist Magazine,"i8i7) remarks : — "When I 
inquired into her spiritual state, she replied, ' I hope you will 
strive to make yourself easy concerning me ; because all is and 
will be well with me for ever. Jesus is my all. The Lord liveth, 
and blessed be my Rock ! He is a sure foundation." Observing 
me weep on account of her approaching dissolution, she requested 
me not to grieve, " Because (said she) I shall be happy for ever ; 
and I now feel perfectly resigned to the Divine will. Towards 
the end of her last day her speech began to falter. A few 
minutes before her departure, she, pressing my hand, said, 4 1 do 
love you, but I love God Almighty better : my obligations to 
] lim are infinitely greater. Yes — 

" My soul, through my Redeemer's care, 
Saved from the second death I feel ; 
My eyes from tears of dark despair, 
My feet from falling into hell." 



Hy. 250.] 



and its Associations. 



157 



And then immediately added, ' My sight is going, and / am 
going ! ' and in a moment fell asleep in Jesus." 

Hymn 247. — " Holy as thou, O Lord, is none I" — " There is 
none holy as the Lord? &c. — Tune, Palmi, 1761. 

Forms No. 448 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., based on 1 Sam. ii. 2. 

Hymn 248. — " Blest be our everlasting Lord." — " Blessed be the 
Lord? &c.— -Tune, Brooks, 1761. 

Made up of three of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i. Nos. 623-625, based on 1 Chron. xxix. 10-13. 

Hymn 249. — " Great God ! to me the sight afford." — 16 The Lord 
descended in the cloud? &c. — Tune, Trinity, 1761. 

This fonns three of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., Nos. 166-168, founded on Exod. xxxiv. 5, 6. 

Hymn 250. — " Thy ceaseless, unexhausted love." — " The Lord 
God, merciful and gracious? &c. — Tune, Trinity, 1761. 

This is also composed of three of Charles Wesley's " Short 
Scripture Hymns," vol. i. Nos. 1 69-1 71, founded on Exod. xxxiv. 6. 

Matthew Henry has, in his Commentary on this passage, 
very similar thoughts to those expressed by the poet. It is 
known that Mr Wesley made free use of Henry's Notes in ascer- 
taining the interpretation of many portions of Holy Scripture. 

For fifty years Thomas Thompson, of Brompton, Kent, was 
a useful member of the Methodist Society, a Sunday-school 
teacher, and leader. He was truly a pattern to believers in his 
integrity, simplicity, and devotedness to the cause of God. On 
the Sabbath before his death he addressed the school with his 
usual earnestness, but during the week he met with an accident^ 
by which he sustained severe internal injuries. He became at 
once resigned to the certainty of speedy dissolution, saying, 
" My Saviour is about to take me home ; I have left all the 
future to Him." Among his last words, he repeated the verse— 
" Faithful, O Lord, Thy mercies are ! 
A Rock that cannot move * 
A thousand promises declare 
Thy constancy of love." 
His end was peace, and his home heaven. 



i 5 8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 257. 



Hymn 251. — " Father of me, and all mankind." — " Our Father 
which art in heaven? &c — Tune, Spitalfields, 1761. 

This forms part of two of Charles Wesley's " Scripture 
Hymns," vol. ii., No. 342 and No. 343, founded on Luke xi. 2, 
being a paraphrase of the first three clauses of the Lord's Prayer. 
Three verses of the original are left out. 

Hymn 252.— "Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."—" The 
Lord bless thee, and keep thee? &c. — Tune, Hallelujah, 1761. 

Formed of Nos. 200-202 of Charles Wesley's " Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., founded on Numb. vi. 24-26. 

Hymn 253.* — " Father, in whom we live." — To the Trinity. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 34 in "Redemption Hymns." 
This was added to the collection in 1797. 

Hymn 254— "The day of Christ, the day of God."— The 
Divinity of Christ. — Tune, Smith's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns on the Trinity," founded on 
2 Peter iii. 12. 

Hymn 255. — " Spirit of Truth, essential God."— ■" All Scripture 
is given by inspiration of God? &c. — Tune, Norwich, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns on the Trinity," founded on 
2 Tim. xvi., and 2 Peter L 21. 

HYMN 256.— "Hail! Father, Son, and Spirit great*— TM 
Plurality and Trinity of Perso7is. — Tune, Trinity, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from page 58 of " Hymns on the Trinity." 
Its tendency is to show the connexion between the creation 
and redemption of man. 

Hymn 257.* — " Glory be to God on high." — Gloria in Excelsis.— 
Tune, Salisbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's paraphrase of the Gloria in Excelsis, in the 
Sacramental Service, found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1739, P a £ e I2 & It is printed in John Wesley's " Select Hymns, 
with Tunes annext," and was added to the collection alter Mr 
Wesley's death. 



Hy. 262.] 



and its Associations. 



159 



Hymn 258. — "Jehovah, God the Father, bless." — "The Lord 
bless thee, and keep thee" &c. — Tune, Brooks, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns on the Trinity," founded on 
Numb. vi. 24. The last verse of the original is left out, in 
which occurs the line, " The incommunicable name." 

Hymn 259.— "Hail! holy, holy, holy Lord." — "Holy, holy, is 
the Lord of Hosts? &c— Tune, Trinity, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns on the Trinity, page 69, 
founded on Isaiah vi. 3, and Rev. iv. 8. 

Hymn 260. — " Holy, holy, holy Lord." — To the Trinity— Tune, 
Salisbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from page 96 of " Hymns on the Trinity." 

It is a hymn full of noble thoughts, conveyed in fine and 
appropriate language. Dr Watts, in one of his lyrics, has the 
same idea which Charles Wesley has conveyed in the second 
stanza — 

44 Thy dazzling beauties while he sings, 
He hides his face behind his wings, 
And ranks of shining thrones around 
Fall worshipping, and spread the ground." 

Dr Young, in his " Complaint/' Night Second, has this line — 

" Time, in advance, behind him hides his wings." 

Hymn 261.—" Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost."— To the 
Trinity. — Tune, Sheffield, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from page 98 of " Hymns on the Trinity." 

Hymn 262.—" A thousand oracles divine." — To the Trinity. — 
Tune, Hallelujah, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns on the Trinity," page 100. 
The original is printed in eight-line stanzas. Dr Edward Young, 
in his " Night Thoughts," Night Four, line 440, has the follow- 
ing, which exactly corresponds with the seventh verse of this 
fine hymn — 

" They see on earth a bounty not indulged on high, 
And downward look for heaven's superior praise." 



i6o 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 268. 



Hymn 263.*— " Father, how wide Thy glory shines!" — God 
glorious, and Sinners saved. 

Dr Watts', from "Horse Lyricse," 1705. The original has 
nine verses, the fifth and seventh being omitted. This hymn 
was added to the collection many years after Mr Wesley's 
death, and does not appear in the edition of 1805. 

Through the instrumentality of an awakening dream, George 
Rolstone was brought to God at the age of eighteen. He joined 
the Methodist Society, and during fifty years maintained a con- 
sistent godly profession. For forty years he was a useful class- 
leader. During his last illness, whilst he suffered much, he had 
a glorious assurance of his acceptance with God. He looked 
forward with joyous anticipation to the employment of glorified 
saints, and sometimes said — 

" ' O may I bear some humble part, 
In that immortal song.' " 

In this patient and happy frame of mind, he departed from the 
militant to join the triumphant church. 

Hymn 264.—" O All-creating God." — Of the Creation and Fall 
• of Man. — Tune, Brentford, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the second of his " Hymns for 
Children." The third verse is omitted. 

Hymn 265. — " O may Thy powerful word." — " The kingdom oj 
heaven suffereth violence? &c. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 137 of "Short Scripture 
Hymns," voL iL, founded on Matt. xi. 12. This hymn com- 
mences another section of the book with the title of " Believers 
Fighting." 

Hymn 266. — " Soldiers of Christ arise." 
„ 267. — " But, above all, lay hold." 
„ 268. — " In fellowship, alone." 
The whole awiour of God. — Tune, Handel's March, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming together No. 140 in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. i. ; founded on Eph. vi., and extend- 
ing to sixteen verses, four of which are omitted. It is inserted 
in " Select Hymns with Tunes annext." 



Hy. 271.] and its Associations. 



161 



HYMN 269. — " Surrounded by a host of foes." — This is the 
Victory /—Tune, Norwich, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 113. 

A fierce epidemical fever in July 1826, entered the dwelling 
of William Treffry, of Cuby, Cornwall. Its first victim was 
Ann Treffry, a venerable widow, a godly woman, who had for 
fifty years maintained a consistent membership in the Methodist 
Society ; she died ascribing " Glory to God ! " Immediately 
afterwards, Charles Treffry, a youth of eighteen, enjoying un- 
utterable peace of mind, yielded to the same disease. Then 
followed the head of the household himself. He had been 
afflicted for some years, and hence he fell a more ready victim ; 
but his loins were girded, and his light was burning. Shortly 
before his departure, he delighted all about him by declaring 
his unshaken confidence in God in these lines — 

" What though a thousand hosts engage, 
A thousand worlds, my soul to shake ? 

I have a shield shall quell their rage, 
And drive the alien armies back : 

Portray' d it bears a bleeding Lamb ; 

I dare believe in Jesu's name." 

Hymn 270. — " Equip me for the war." — On God's Everlasting 
Love. — Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 12 of " Hymns on God's Ever- 
lasting Love." The first and eighth verses of the original are 
left out. The first commences — 

"O all-atoning Lamb." 

This long poem was written at a time when the Antinomian 
and high Calvinistic doctrines were boldly enforced ; and in 
the omitted portions will be found some very strong thoughts 
against " the five points." 

Hymn 271. — " O Almighty God of Love." — On going into a 
Place of Danger. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742. 
The first and second verses of the original are left out 



L 



1 62 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 272. 



Hymn 272.—" Peace ! doubting heart ; my God's I am ! " — Isaiah 
xliii. 2, 3.— Tune, 23d Psalm, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems, 1739, 
page 153. This hymn is one of rare excellence, abounding in 
scriptural images and metaphors, and is full of instruction and 
encouragement. 

The early life of James Hoby, of London, was a testimony to 
the truth of the scriptural record that " The thoughts of the heart 
are evil, and that continually." A more giddy round of gaiety, 
worldliness, and sin never attended a young man than was the 
lot of Mr Hoby when young. His mind next became entangled 
with almost every variety of religious opinion — Jewish, Popish, 
Mohammedan, and infidel. During all this time he thought 
himself to be a good churchman. Having been led to the 
Methodist Chapel at Greenwich, he heard a sermon by the 
Rev. Richard Watson on holiness, from which he learned that in 
his heart there was none of it. The next Methodist sermon he 
heard was by the Rev. Jabez Bunting, from which he saw, to 
his sorrow, that for thirty years he had been deceiving his own 
heart. Another sermon, by the Rev. Charles Atmore, led him 
to begin family prayer. On Christmas day, 1825, he began to 
meet in Mr Butterworth's class, and received his first ticket 
from the Rev. John Stephens. From that time to the end of 
his life, so deeply conscious was he of the greatness of God's 
mercy to him in rescuing him from so low a degradation, that 
his utmost energies were employed in furthering the kingdom 
of Christ in the world, and in making known his salvation. 
When informed that the disease of the heart from which he was 
suffering would terminate suddenly, and obliged to keep his 
room he requested that, when he was dying, his friends would 
join in singing the hymn beginning — 

" Peace ! doubting heart ; my God's I am ! 
Who form'd me man, forbids my fear." 

On the first Sunday of 1863, he had hoped to have again joined 
in the Annual Service at Great Queen Street, but the call of the 
Divine Master on that day was, "Come up higher;" and just 
after saying " He will give the Holy Spirit to them that ask 
Him," his soul entered the rest above. 
No tale of sorrow and distress could exceed in intensity of 



Hy. 272.] 



and its Associations. 



interest that of the loss of the Maria mail-boat, in the West 
Indies, in 1826. The account of the shipwreck of the Apostle 
Paul near Malta is the nearest approach to the one just named 
for variety of incident, and for the unbounded faith which 
was exercised on the occasion. Five missionaries, three wives 
of missionaries, with several children and nurses, were returning 
to Antigua. In sight of land, a storm arose, and before its fury 
the mail-boat was wrecked, the five missionaries were drowned, 
and in fact the only one of the large party who escaped with 
life was Mrs Jones, the wife of one of the missionaries, who 
endured many deaths in saving her own life ; but through 
mercy she was saved, and some years afterwards was married 
to Mr Hincksman, and died in great peace at Lytham, in April 
1859. When the storm arose, one of the missionaries' sons, a 
little boy, gave out the verse beginning — 

u Though waves and storms go o'er my head," &c. 

After this had been sung, a holy inspiration came over the child, 
and he astonished the party in the boat by the address he gave 
on the shipwreck of Jonah. A strange feeling came over those 
who heard the child. Mrs Jones (Hincksman) tried to pray, 
but could not. At length, she cried, " Lord ! Lord ! help me." 
Scarcely had she uttered the words when she became composed, 
and repeated the verse — 

" Jesus protects ; my fears, begone ! " 

In that time of trouble and sorrow she gladdened her own heart 
and those of her companions by singing, for the last hymn most 
of them heard on earth — 

" When passing through the watery deep, 

I ask in faith His promised aid, 
The waves an awful distance keep, 

And shrink from my devoted head ; 
Fearless their violence I dare ; 
They cannot harm, for God is there ! " 

She was the only one who could sing in that distressing hour, 
and the only one saved in that redeemed company ! — Vide 
Methodist Magazine, 1826, page 485, and 1861, page 195. 

Another incident of like character, the peril and preservation 
of a missionary, and the use of this hymn on the occasion, will 
be found in a letter from Mr Wallace, in the Methodist Maga- 
zine, May 1846, page 977. 



164 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 274. 



When Methodism was little more than a by-word and 
reproach, Mrs Gaulter chose for her companion in life one of 
John Wesley's preachers. When about fourteen years old she 
joined the Methodist Society, and for more than sixty years she 
maintained a truly consistent godly profession, and in all things 
lived and acted under the influence of the fear and love of God. 
She suffered much during life, and in her last illness she had 
but little strength for resistance ; but the enemy of souls tried 
to distress her mind even at the end of a very long pilgrimage. 
Shortly before her death, after one of these spiritual conflicts, 
she repeated with much energy — 

" Still nigh me, O my Saviour, stand ! 
And guard in fierce temptation's hour : 
Hide in the hollow of Thy hand ; 

Show forth in me Thy saving power ; 
Still be Thy arm my sure defence : 
Nor earth nor hell shall pluck me thence." 

Her last words were but faint breathings — "A world of light 
and glory " — and that world she then entered, 

Hymn 273. — hi Omnipotent Lord, My Saviour and King." — 
The Good Fight.— -Tune, Triumph, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 137. 

Elizabeth Deane, of Ightham, Sevenoaks, was a zealous and 
liberal member of the Methodist Society during thirty years, 
and greatly aided the erection of a chapel on her property. She 
was a timid follower of the Lord Jesus, but in death she was 
enabled to triumph. Fearing a sudden death, in answer to 
prayer she was saved from her apprehensions, and gave the 
most satisfactory evidence of being ready for her change. The 
last words she was heard to say were — 

" Omnipotent Lord, my Saviour and King 
Thy succour afford, Thy righteousness bring ; 
Thy promises bind Thee Compassion to have, 
Now, now let me find Thee Almighty to save." 

Hymn 274. — " O my old, my bosom foe." — After a Recovery, — 
Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749* 
vol. i., No. 95. 



Hy. 276.] 



and its Associations. 



165 



Hymn 275. — " The Lord unto my Lord hath said/— 11 Lord, Thou 
hast been our dwelling-place? &c. — Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742. 
page 89, being a paraphrase of the Ninetieth Psalm, first verse. 
The original has fifteen verses, six of which are left out. . 

Hymn 276.* — " Worship, and thanks, and blessing." — Written 
after a Deliverance in a Tumult, — Tune, Dying Stephen, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 20 of his " Redemption 
Hymns." 

At this distance of time, it is difficult to decide which of several 
tumultuous riots, from which the poet of Methodism so narrowly 
escaped with his life, gave rise to this elegant and spirited hymn 
of gratitude and praise. The Rev. John Kirk, in a very dis- 
criminating article on this subject, traces the origin of this 
hymn to what are known as the Wednesbury riots of 1743, in 
which "Honest Munchin" was the captain of the mob, till 
divine grace reached even him, and after enduring from him, 
his followers, and maddened bull-dogs, what might be termed 
" deaths often," Charles Wesley himself received the broken- 
spirited Munchin on trial as a Methodist. If the Wednesbury 
riots gave birth to this hymn, it was composed on October 26, 
1743 ; and was afterwards used on other occasions rivalling in 
violence and ferocity the scenes which it commemorates. An- 
other tumult is thus referred to by Mr Charles Wesley, as part 
of a long and exciting narrative of the doings of an infuriated 
wicked mob at Devizes : " In 1747, after riding two or three 
hundred yards, I looked back and saw Mr Merton on the 
ground in the midst of the mob, and two bull-dogs upon him. 
One was first let loose, and leaped at the horse's nose ; but the 
horse, with his foot, beat him down. The other fastened on his 
nose and held there till Mr Merton, with the butt-end of his 
whip, felled him to the ground. Then the first dog fastened on 
the horse's breast ; the beast reared, and Mr Merton slid gently 
off. The dog held on till the flesh tore off. Then some of the 
men took off the dogs, others cried, " Let them alone." But 
neither beast nor man had any commission to hurt. I stopped 
the horse and delivered him to my friend ; he remounted with 
great composure, and we rode on leisurely till out of sight 5 then 



TJie Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 279. 



we mended our pace, and in an hour came to Seen, having rode 
three miles about, and by seven to Wrexall. The news of the 
danger was got thither before us, but we brought the welcome 
tidings of our deliverance. We joined in hearty praises to our 
Deliverer, singing the hymn — 

" Worship, and thanks, and blessing," &c. 

Men who could thus suffer and thus sing were as ready ior the 
" lions' den " or the " fiery furnace " as for such infuriated mad- 
ness of men and beasts. The hymn was inserted in the collec- 
tion after Mr Wesley's death. 

Hymn 277. — "Jesus, the Conqueror, reigns." — Thanksgiving. — 
Tune, Handel's March, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 139 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. 

The original is in sixteen stanzas, the first six only being used. 
These when first added to the collection formed three hymns of 
two verses each. They were united in 1830. 

Hymn 278. — " Who is this gigantic foe?" — David and Goliath, 
1 Samuel xvii. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 176. 

In its construction the history of the triumph of David over 
the Philistine is applied most effectively to the triumph of 
believers over inbred and besetting sin. 

Hymn 279. — " Shall I, for fear of feeble man." — Boldness in the 
Gospel. — Tune, Canon, 1761. 

From the German of John Joseph Winkler, published in 
1703, and translated by John Wesley during his residence in 
Georgia as a missionary. It appeared first in " Psalms and 
Hymns," issued by the Wesleys in 1738, and is also added to 
their " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739. 

" This," says Miss Winkler, " is one of the standard hymns of 
Germany." John Wesley endured severe persecution whilst in 
America for his stern fidelity in reproving sin, and in the lan- 
guage of this hymn he found comfort and encouragement. 

John Joseph Winkler was born at Luckau, in Saxony, Decem- 
ber 23, 1670. He was first pastor in Magdeburg, afterwards 



Hy. 285.] 



and its Associations, 



167 



chaplain in the army, and accompanied the troops to Holland 
and Italy. Subsequently he returned to Magdeburg, where he 
became chief minister at the Cathedral, and member of the 
Consistory. He died there, August 11, 1722. He was an excel- 
lent man, of a deeply-cultivated mind, and wrote ten very good 
hymns. 

Hymn 280.— -"The Lord is King, and earth submits."— 11 He that 
believeth shall not make haste P — Tune, Zoar, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 274. 

Hymn 281.-— "Are there not in the labourer's day."— The Way 
of Duty the Way of Safety. — Tune, Snowsfields, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol i., No. 124. 

Hymn 282.—" But can it be, that I should prove"— In Tempta- 
tion. — Tune, Chapel, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 113. 

The original has six verses, the third being left out. This has 
the words " second part " at the head of the hymn, probably 
through an oversight ; it is a separate hymn in the original, and 
under a different head to the previous one. 

Hymn 283. — "O God, my hope, my heavenly rest."— For a 
Preacher of the Gospel. — Tune, Marienburn, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 178, with a separate title, " Moses' Wish." 

Hymn 284.—" To Thee, great God of Love ! I bow."— For a 
Preacher of the Gospel. — Tune, Cary's, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 180, in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, voL i. The second verse of the original is left 
out. 

Hymn 285. — « Come, Saviour, Jesus, from above." — Renouncing 
all for Christ. — Tune, AngeFs Song, 1761. 
The original of this hymn was written in French about the 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 285. 



year 1640, by Madame Antoinette Bourignon, whilst she was 
suffering from her father's anger on account of the mercenary 
suitors who solicited her hand. It expresses her resolution to 
devote herself entirely to the service of God. The French is in 
five eight-line verses. Madame Bourignon was born in 1616, 
and died in 1680. Her life was one of extraordinary suffering, 
privation, and endurance. Her self-denying industry and devo- 
tion were the marvel of many, and her writings fill twenty 
volumes. John Wesley made the translation in 1736, when he 
was suffering from reproach and calumny in America. It first 
appeared in "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a S e I2 3* 
It is also found in Dr John Byrom's " Miscellaneous Poems," 
2 vols., Manchester, 1773, vol. ii., page 211, with the title, " A 
Hymn to Jesus/' This publication has led some to suppose, 
erroneously, that it was written by Byrom. 

A reminiscence of sadness is associated with this hymn in 
connexion with the last service conducted by the Rev. George 
Manwaring. That service was the administration of the Lord's 
Supper in Carver Street Chapel, Sheffield, August 14, 1825. 
Little more than fourteen days sufficed for a violent fever to end 
the mortal strife. During the wanderings of the mind, the man 
of God was occupied with divine things, and the evening before 
his death it was affecting to his attendants to hear him give out 
the hymn — 

" Come, Saviour Jesus, from above ! 
Assist me with Thy heavenly grace ; 
Empty my heart of earthly love, 
And for Thyself prepare the place." 

This he did with a distinct and audible voice, as he lay in- 
sensible in bed, proceeding through the whole of the Communion 
Service and the form of administering the elements, just as he 
had done during his last earthly service. In imagination he 
was commemorating the Lord's death with His saints on the 
earth, and almost immediately afterwards his released spirit 
joined .the marriage-supper of the Lamb in the courts above. 
Mrs Manwaring was just recovering from an illness when her 
husband was smitten down, and her watchful care of him she 
loved induced the same malady in herself. The children were 
removed to the care of friends. She was taken to the dwell- 
ing of the Rev. Daniel Isaac, to whose care her ultimate re- 
covery was mainly attributable ; nor was it deemed prudent or 



Hy. 288.] 



and its Associations. 



169 



safe to tell her of her widowed condition till her husband had 
been buried two days. 

Hymn 286. — " Abraham, when severely tried." — " The life of 
faith exe?nplified? &c. — Tune, Complaint, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 12. This is a portion of one of the longest of this poet's 
compositions ; it extends to more than eighty verses, and is a 
paraphrase of Heb. xi. 17-19. 

Hymn 287.—" Omnipresent God ! whose aid." — At lying 
down. — Tune, Magdalen, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, No. 119 of " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. i. The original has eight verses, four of which are 
omitted. 

Under the ministry of the Rev. William Henshaw, Mrs Wil- 
son, wife of the Rev. Joseph Wilson, was convinced of sin, and 
shortly afterwards, during a revival amongst young people in 
the Rye circuit, she obtained the blessing of pardon. In a 
humble and consistent walk before God, she manifested the 
power of divine grace in her heart. During her last illness, the 
Bible, Wesley's Hymns, and the " Pilgrim's Progress," afforded 
her much encouragement. It was her practice every night to 
repeat upon her knees the whole of the hymn commencing — 

" Omnipresent God ! whose aid 
No one ever ask'd in vain," &c. 

A more suitable evening prayer was scarcely ever done in verse- 
It is matter of surprise if thousands of the Lord's people have 
not made a similar and daily use of this admirable summary of 
devotion and self-dedication. 

Hymn 288.—" O God, Thy faithfulness I plead \"—In Tempta- 
tion.— -Tune, Wood's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 106 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 7 749, vol. i. The original has eight verses, three of 
which are omitted. 

It is a delightful record which a daughter has written of her 
mother, " That the light of purity and holiness which made the 
character of Mrs Mary Miller so lovely in the eyes of others was 
invisible to herself." What is recorded of this holy " mother 



170 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 289. 



in Israel" may be with equal truth affirmed of her excellent 
husband, the pure, transparent, and holy William Edward 
Miller, Wesleyan minister. The writer of these lines has a de- 
lightful recollection of hearing the living testimony of the good 
man, delivered at a love-feast in Carter Street Chapel, Sheffield, 
in 1840, that for years sin had had no place in his thoughts or 
heart. The thirty-eight years passed by Mrs Miller in the 
Methodist Society were marked by inward and abiding peace, 
irreproachable uprightness, and a holy life. She walked in 
light. She frequently repeated the three last verses of Hymn 
288, more especially the closing lines — 

" Thy love shall burst the shades of death, 
And bear me from the gulf beneath, 
To everlasting day." 

What was said of the holy patriarch was equally appropriate to 
her, " She was not, for God took her.* 

Hymn 289.— " God of my life, whose gracious power." — At the 
Approach of Temptation, — Tune, Invitation, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 149. The original has fifteen verses, seven of which are 
omitted. 

Shortly before the close of the last century, the first Metho- 
dist services were held in the village of Walton, near Brampton, 
Cumberland. One of the first-fruits of that preaching was the 
conversion of a youth of sixteen, named Joseph Taylor. From 
that time his whole life and energies were devoted to the service 
of God, and abundantly was he owned and blessed in his work. 
He accompanied a young friend of his to Liverpool to see him 
sail as a Wesleyan missionary to the West Indies : but when the 
seraphic Dr Coke saw the two young men together, he was so 
impressed with the superior fitness of Mr Taylor f6r the work, 
that he was appointed and sent in the place of his friend. 
Reaching Barbadoes on a Sunday morning, accompanied by 
another missionary, they hasted, on landing, to the Methodist 
chapel. The missionary in charge was so overjoyed that, at the 
conclusion of the reading of the lesson, he left the pulpit and 
hasted to welcome the two brethren before the whole congrega- 
tion. They fell on each other's necks, and wept tears of joy and 
gratitude. Mr Taylor's labours were abundantly owned of God 



Hy. 291.] and its Associations. 



171 



in that mission, scarcely a service being held without souls being 
saved ; and, as he once observed when stationed in London, he 
saw more souls saved in the West Indies on one Sabbath than 
he saw saved in the metropolis in three months. At one mis- 
sion-station he had to sleep in a room near the chapel with no 
human being near. A good black woman prepared him his 
supper, and then left him alone with God. But he found these 
sweet and happy seasons of communion with heaven. After 
some years' earnest labours, he was brought to the margin of 
the grave by fever and ague, as well as by the perils of the sea. 
When, in subsequent life, he referred to these times of affliction 
and jeopardy, he would devoutly lift his eyes and hands heaven- 
ward, and with strong feeling repeat the stanza — 
" Oft hath the sea confess'd Thy power, 

And given me back at Thy command ; 
It could not, Lord, my life devour, 

Safe in the hollow of Thine hand. 
" Oft from the margin of the grave 

Thou, Lord, hast lifted up my head ; 
Sudden, I found Thee near to save ; 

The fever own'd Thy touch, and fled." 

Then he would add, " I will sing of mercy and judgment : unto 
Thee, O Lord, will I sing." Few men have done more real ser- 
vice in promoting the kingdom of Christ, not only in the West 
Indies, but in various important circuits at home, and especially 
as one of the general missionary secretaries, and as president of 
the Conference in 1834. He was a devout and earnest Chris- 
tian. He died in peace at Bass Lane House, Bury, Lancashire, 
the residence of J. R. Kay, Esq., and had his last resting-place 
in the burial-ground of Cheetham-hill Wesleyan Chapel, Man- 
chester, honoured in death as he had deservedly been in life. 

Hymn 290.—" My God, if I may call Thee mine."— Justified, 
but not Sanctified. — TUNE, Pudsey, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 150. The original is in nine double verses, five of which 
are omitted. 

Hymn 291.—" Fondly my foolish heart essays." — In Desertion 
or Temptation. — Tune, Athlone, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 



172 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 295. 



page 149. The original has fourteen verses, the first ten ot 
which are left out. 

Hymn 292. — " To the haven of Thy breast." — Isaiah xxxii. 2. 
Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 145. The latter half of the fourth, and the first half of 
the fifth verses in the original are left out. 

Hymn 293. — "Jesus, my King, to Thee I bow." — Fight the 
Good Fight of Faith. — Tune, Italian, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 251. The original has nineteen verses, the fourth, and all 
after the tenth, being omitted. 

Hymn 294. — "Jesus, Thou sovereign Lord of all." — Desiring to 
Pray. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 26 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, v °l« ii* One-half of the original is left out. The 
necessity and efficacy of prayer is strongly set forth in this 
hymn. "The God-commanding plea" of the fourth verse is 
founded on Isa. xlv. 11, where the Almighty says, "Command 
ye me." This commences the third section of the book, with 
the title, " For Believers Praying." 

Hymn 295.— "Come, ye followers of the Lord." — "Men ought 
always to pray, and not to faint" (Luke xviii. 1). — Tune, 
Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, first printed at the end of a tract, entitled, 
" A Short View of the Differences between the Moravian 
Brethren lately in England, and the Rev. Mr John and Charles 
Wesley, 1741." It is also printed in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii., No. 28. One verse is omitted. 

Under the preaching of the first missionaries at English 
Harbour, Trinity Bay, Newfoundland, the heart of George 
Ivamy was graciously opened to receive the gospel ; after 
he received the evidence of pardon and assurance he was abun- 
dantly happy, and during the rest of his short life he enjoyed 
uninterrupted peace with God. Fever and consumption followed 



Hy. 300.] and its Associations. 



173 



each other in quick succession, and in the midst of his sufferings, 
after a violent paroxysm, he broke forth into singing — 

" Be it weariness or pain 

To slothful flesh and blood ; 
Yet we will the cross sustain, 
And bless the welcome load." 

He died, saying to his mother, "Death is gain ; I am going to 
Jesus." 

Hymn 296. — " The praying Spirit breathe." — In a Hurry of 
Business. — Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, No. 145, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. i. The original commences "Help, Lord! the busy 
foe," &c, but the first verse is left out. In the fourth line the 
original reads, " Call off my anxious heart ; " and by changing 
the word "anxious" to "peaceful," the intention of the poet is 
quite diverted. 

Hymn 297. — " Shepherd Divine, our wants relieve." — Desiring 
to Love. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, No. 27 in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. ii. 

Hymn 298. — " Oh, wondrous power of faithful prayer." — For 
those that seek Redemption. — Tune, Canterbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Redemption Hymns," page 49. 
There is great fervency of manner and strength of language in 
this hymn. The all-powerful intercession of the Redeemer is 
set forth in the line, " Jesus forces me to spare." 

Hymn 299. — "Jesus, Thou hast bid us pray." — Avenge me of 
mine Adversary. — Tune, Kings wood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 199, founded on Luke xviii. The original has ten verses, 
two of which are left out. 

Hymn 30a — " Jesus, I fain would find." — Revelation iii. 19. — 
Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

It forms No. 846 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. ii. 



174 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 305. 



Hymn 301. — "Jesus, my strength, my hope." — A Poor Sinner. 
— Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 146. The fourth verse of the original is left out, and the 
second is placed at the end and forms the sixth. 

Brought to a knowledge of the truth under the ministry of 
the Rev. William Jenkins in 1791, Ann Austen, of Kimbolton, 
joined the Methodist Society in early life. For many years she 
was a diligent tract-distributor, sick-visitor, and class-leader. 
For five years she was confined to the house by severe suffering, 
but no complaint escaped her lips. In a paroxysm of pain she 
would sometimes say — 

* * I want a heart to pray, To pray and never cease, 

Never to murmur at Thy stay, Nor wish my sufferings less." 
Her last words were expressive of her confidence in God, and 
sure hope of heaven. 

Hymn 302. — " Lord, that I may learn of Thee. ? ' — Isaiah xxviii. 9. 
— Tune, Minories, 1761. 
Forms No. 1005 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i. 

Hymn 303. — " Ah, when shall I awake ? " — God's Everlasting 
Love. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

Forms No. 7 in Part II. of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on 
God's Love." The original has eleven verses, five of which are 
omitted. 

Hymn 304. — " Saviour, on me the want bestow."— The Beati- 
tudes. — Tune, Travellers, 1761. 

This is made up of Nos. 19, 21, 22, 23, 24, 26, and 27 of 
Charles Wesley's " Hymns on the Beatitudes," found in the 
" Short Scripture Hymns," vol. ii. 

Hymn 305. — "Gracious Redeemer, shake." — For the Watchnight. 
— Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 85 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The original has ten verses, the first four 
of which are omitted. This hymn commences the fourth section 
of the collection, with the title, " For Believers Watching." 



Hv. 3ii.] 



and its Associations. 



175 



Hymn 306. — " Father, to Thee I lift mine eyes.' 1 — For the 
Morning. — Tune, 112th Psalm, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 142. 

Hymn 307. — " God of all grace and majesty." — For the fear of 
God. — Tune, Wenvo, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 166. In line six, verse four, Mr Bunting suggests 
changing the first word "And" for " Oh !" 

Hymn 308. — " I want a principle within." — For a Tender Con- 
science. — Tune, Wenvo, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 167 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The first verse, and the halves of verses 
four and five of the original, are omitted. 

Hymn 309. — " Help, Lord, to whom for help I fly." — In Temp- 
tation. — Tune, Musicians, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. no of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. L 

Hymn 310. — " Into a world of ruffians sent." — For the Watch- 
night. — Tune, St Paul's, 1761. 

Forms No. 89 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii., the first verse of the original being left 
out. Mr Bunting has suggested an entirely new and much 
improved reading of the first verse : — 

" Into a world of tempters sent, 
I walk on hostile ground ; 
Where fools, on self-destruction bent, 
And bent on mine, surround. " 

Hymn 311. — " Bid me of men beware." — For the Watchnight — 
Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Forms No. 90 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii., the first verse of the original being left 
cut, and the next slightly altered. 



i/6 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 312. 



Hymn 312. — " Jesu, my Saviour, Brother, Friend 
„ 313. — " Pierce, fill me with an humble fear." 
Watch in all things. — Tune, Purcells, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 214. The original of these two forms one hymn, extend- 
ing to fifteen stanzas, the last four being left out. 

John Wesley and Methodism had no truer friends than were 
Ann and Sarah Loxdale, two of the daughters of Thomas Lox- 
dale, Esq., of Shrewsbury. Ann was the intimate personal 
friend of the Rev. John Wesley and the Rev. John Fletcher, 
and afterwards became the second wife of the Rev. Dr Coke. 
Sarah, the younger sister, was converted to God in early life, 
and was afterwards married to Mr Hill, of Shrewsbury, son of 
the estimable Mrs Hill, who was her first class-leader. Her life 
was one uninterrupted round of goodness and mercy, and can- 
not be better described than in the words of the Rev. P. 
M 'Cowan : — " Her Christian experience was deep ; her dis- 
course was spiritual, edifying, and intelligent ; and her entire ' 
deportment and conduct evinced the closeness of her walk with 
God. Her attachment to Methodism was ardent ; and her 
liberality in supporting its institutions exemplary. Her under- 
standing was strong and well cultivated ; her judgment was 
sound and discriminating ; and her disposition was generous 
and tenderly affectionate. Her piety was cheerful, evangelical, 
and catholic. She was a faithful friend, a condescending 
teacher of youth, a wise counsellor, and an efficient class- 
leader." To this justly-deserved eulogium may be added, that 
she was, from the commencement of her religious course, ac- 
customed to early rising and habitual industry. In later years, 
when unable to rise early, she generally had her Bible, 
hymn-book,* and writing desk in requisition about six in the 
morning. This custom she observed till she was half way 
between eighty and ninety years of age. Only five days' illness 
preceded her death, but her mind was unclouded, and she 
enjoyed perfect peace. The thought of joining the glorious 

* A copy of Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," I749» 
two volumes, with Mrs Sarah Hill's name written across both title- 
pages, and formerly used by that lady, has been used by the writer of 
these notes to compare with the originals all the hymns selected from 
that work, and it is prized by him for that pleasant association. 



Hy. 316.] and its Associations. 



177 



company before the throne, made her joyful. Naming several, 
her departed friends, she added— H They are waiting for me ; it 
is enrapturing to think of joining them." The day but one 
before her death, she appeared to be favoured with some pecu- 
liar manifestation of the Divine presence, and said — 

" And, hovering, hides me in His wings." 
In serene tranquillity, her happy spirit entered paradise. 

Hymn 314. — " Hark, how the watchmen cry." 
„ 315. — "Angels your march oppose." 
For the Watchnight— Tune, Handel's March, 1761. 

From No. 91 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The original forms one hymn of twelve 
verses, five of which are omitted. 

Hymn 316. — "Eternal Power, whose high abode." — God 
exalted above all praise. — Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

Dr Watts', from Horae Lyricse, 1705. The original has six 
verses, the second being left out. It is as follows : — 

" The lowest step above Thy seat, 
Rises too high for Gabriel's feet. 
In vain the tall archangel tries, 
To reach thine height with wondering eyes." 

The third verse commences thus : — 

" Thy dazzling beauties whilst he sings," 
which Mr Wesley has greatly improved by altering to — 

" Thee, while the first archangel sings." 
There is an interest attaching to this hymn for all Methodists 
which cannot be left unnoticed. On Sunday morning, Jan. 23, 
1855, the Rev. Dr Beaumont prepared to preach, in Waltham 
Street Chapel, Hull, the anniversary sermons for the Sunday 
school. He had been suffering much from acute rheumatism, 
and had declined taking any medicine for relief that morning, 
lest it should distress him in his work. The morning was cold, 
and the street slippery with the frozen snow, yet, with the aid ot 
one of his daughters, he reached the chapel safely, making but 
few observations by the way. On entering the vestry, he made 
inquiries about the condition of the schools, for whose aid 
he was about to preach. He ascended the pulpit-stairs with 
elasticity, in order as much as possible to conceal the lameness 

M 



178 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hv. 317. 



from which he was suffering. He opened the service with much 
solemnity, giving out Hymn 316, commencing — 
" Eternal Power, whose high abode." 
Without reading the first verse, he gave out the first two lines of 
the second — 

" Thee, while the first archangel sings, 
He hides his face behind his wings." 
These lines he delivered with an awful pathos, his lips quiver- 
ing as he uttered the solemn words. His emotion was doubtless 
increased by the loosening of the silver cord of life at that 
moment. Whilst the congregation were singing the second of 
those lines, the preacher looked partially round (as if in search 
of something), sank down on the spot where he stood, and his 
beautiful spirit was at once admitted to chant the praises of God 
before His throne in heaven, and to witness that beatific vision 
which leads even the " first archangel" in heaven to " hide his 
face behind his wings." Without a sound, or sigh, or motion, 
or without even a single instant's premonition, did that eminent 
servant of God pass away to the skies, with a mind full of sweet 
peace and steadfast trust, overflowing with sacred joy in the full 
performance of his holy duties. 

Hymn 317. — "Ah, Lord, with trembling I confess."— Matthew 
v. 13. — Tune, Welling, 1761. 

Forms No. 30 of Charles Wesley's u Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii. This hymn has long been " a stone of stumbling and a 
rock of offence " to many Calvinists. 

Forty years of the active life of John Early were devoted to 
God ; during the whole of which, he was the chief support of 
the cause of Methodism in Witney. For several of his latter 
years, he was deprived of his sight, and was otherwise infirm, 
but in all these sufferings he complained not, for God was the 
strength of his heart and his portion. In his last illness he was 
very happy ; praising God, speaking of the precious blood of 
Jesus, and quoting the promises of God, and a couplet of a 
favourite hymn — 

" And lead me to the mount above, 
Through the low vale of humble love." 
His last words were — " I feel that heaven is my home." 



Hy. 323.] 



and its Associations. 



179 



Hymn 318. — "A charge to keep I have." — Leviticus viii, 35. — 
Tune, Olney, 1761. 
This is No. 188 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i. ; a hymn full of weighty and impressive thought, and often 
sung ; a great favourite, as it will ever remain, owing to its 
special adaptation to the experience of life. 

Hymn 319. — " Watch'd by the world's malignant eye." — 
Nehemiah v. 9.— Tune, Welsh, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 685 of " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i. It shows the poet's great power of embodying 
Gospel duty and principle upon Old Testament history. 

Hymn 320. — " Be it my only wisdom here."—" Behold the fear 
of the Lord, that is wisdom? &c. — Tune, Chapel, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 757 of " Short Scripture 
Hymns/' vol. i., founded on Job xxviii. 28. 

Hymn 321. — " Summon'd my labour to renew." — To be sung at 
work. — Tune, Mitcham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 194. This hymn commences the Fifth Section, with the 
title — " For Believers Working." 

Hymn 322. — " Servant of all, to toil for man." — To be sung at 
work. — Tune, Bexley, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 193. The first verse of the original, omitted, reads as fol- 
lows : — 

" Son of the carpenter, receive 
This humble work of mine ; 
Worth to my meanest labour give 
By joining it to Thine." 

HYMN 323.— "God of almighty love."— An Hourly Act of 
Oblation. — Tune, Lampes, 1746. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 149 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1 749, vol. i. 

In the third verse of the original the first line is, " Spirit of 
grace inspire," and the last line is, " A worm into a god." The 



180 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 327. 

alterations are to be preferred ; but the idea conveyed in the 
last line exactly corresponds with a passage in the first book of 
Young's " Night Thoughts "— 

" How poor, how rich, how abject, how august, 
How complicate, how wonderful, is man ! 

Midway from nothing to the Deity ! 
A beam ethereal, sullied, and absorpt ! 
Though sullied and dishonour'd, still divine ! 
Dim miniature of greatness absolute ! 
An heir of glory, a frail heir of dust ! 
Helpless immortal, insect infinite ! 
A worm ! a god ! " 

Young, as a poet, was a favourite with the Wesleys, but prob- 
ably both Young and the Wesleys had in their minds the 
recollection of the words of the Saviour, " Is it not written in 
your law, I said, Ye are gods ?" John x. 34; see also Gen. i. 26. 

Hymn 324. — " Forth in Thy name, O Lord, I go." — Before Work. 
— Tune, Angels' Song, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 144 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. 

Hymn 325. — " Lo ! I come with joy to do." — For a Believer in 
Worldly Business. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

One of Charles Wesley's " Redemption Hymns." 

Hymn 326. — u Captain of Israel's host, and Guide." — Exodus 
xii. 21. — Tune, Norwich, 1761. 

Forms No. 133 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i. 

Hymn 327. — " O Thou who earnest from above." — Leviticus vi. 
13. — Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

Forms No. 183 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i. 

The words here versified are, " The fire shall ever be burning 
upon the altar ; it shall never go out." Samuel Bradburn, in 
his sketch of the character of the founder of Methodism, says. 
" The Rev. John Wesley told me, when with him in Yorkshire, 



Hy. 328.] 



and its Associations. 



181 



in the year 1781, that his experience might always be found in 
the following lines : — 

* i ' O Thou who earnest from above, 
The pure celestial fire to impart, 
Kindle a flame of sacred love 
On the mean altar of my heart. 
■« 1 There let it for Thy glory burn 
With inextinguishable blaze ; 
And trembling to its source return, 
In humble prayer and fervent praise.' 

That flame of sacred love was always kept burning in Mr 
Wesley's heart, and it always kept him in the path of duty, 
which was the path of safety. Hence, when, on another occa- 
sion, he was asked how he would act if he knew that in two days 
he must die, he simply repeated the programme of the duties he 
had marked out in his diary for those days." 

In early childhood, Eliza Hill, of York, grand-daughter of 
Richard Burdsall, gave her heart to the Lord, and His service 
ever after became her chief joy. Her reliance on the merit and 
death of Christ was habitual ; her sense of acceptance with God 
was generally clear, and her peace and joy unbroken. Knowing 
the shortness of life and certainty of death, she crowded her 
life's short day with works of faith and labours of love. The 
night before she died, she sang the hymn through, commencing — 

' ' O Thou who earnest from above," 
and ending with — 

" Ready for all Thy perfect will, 

My acts of faith and love repeat, 
Till death Thy endless mercies seal, 
And make the sacrifice complete." 

On the last day of her earthly pilgrimage, she was sending out 
garments to the poor. She lived only a few hours after a seizure 
of paralysis. 

Hymn 328. — " When quiet in my house I sit." — Leviticus vi. 7. 
Tune, Canterbury, 1761. 

Formed of four of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., Nos. 289-292, based on these words, " Thou 
shalt talk of them when thou sittest in thy house ; when thou 
walkest by the way ; when thou liest down ; and when thou 



182 



The Methodist Hymn -Book [Hy. 328. 



risest up." This, like many other hymns in the collection, has, 
in every verse and line, been made a blessing to some of the 
Lord's people. 

Previous to the introduction of Methodism into Fakenham 
and Walsingham, in Norfolk, in 1 781, by Mr Wesley, there 
were none but female preachers in that locality ; but twelve of 
these eminently holy gifted women were the means of kindling 
the fire of the Lord, till the work spread, and many villages and 
towns were blessed by the revival which followed their labours. 
Amongst the converts resulting from these labours were many 
of the relatives and friends of Ann Hill Taylor, who afterwards 
became the wife of the Rev. George Taylor. One of these con- 
verts was her mother's brother, Josiah Hill, who became an emi- 
nent Methodist preacher ; another was his brother, James Hill, 
a third was also named James Hill, all three of whom adorned the 
Christian profession during long lives. A fourth, Mr Harrison, 
became a useful local preacher : then followed a sister, who 
became the wife of Richard Fisher, a Methodist preacher, and 
mother of Thomas R. Fisher, also a Methodist preacher. The 
parents of Ann Hill Taylor also shared in the rich outpouring of 
the Spirit of God ; and she herself partook of the heavenly 
fire, which consumed the sin from the soul, and produced a life 
devoted to God and to His service. When scarcely twenty 
years of age, she was made the leader of a class, and wisely used 
the office for many years. Her love to the Word of God was 
great : she studied its truth, lived in obedience to its precepts, 
partook largely of its blessings, and drank in its hallowed inspir- 
ations, diffusing as a consequence light and joy on every hand. 
From youth she almost daily sang — 

( ' When quiet in my house I sit, 

Thy book be my companion still ; 

My joy Thy sayings to repeat, 
Talk o'er the records of Thy will, 

And search the oracles divine, 

Till every heart-felt word be mine.' 

She delighted in the services of the sanctuary, and especially 
in prayer meetings, and for many years attended one held 
at an early hour on the Sabbath morning. Her life was one of 
sincerity, integrity, usefulness, and prayer. 

In very early life, Ann, the wife of the Rev. William Nay lor, 



Hy. 328.] and its Associations. 183 

devoted herself to the Lord, and through many years maintained 
a close and uniform walk with God. In the church she was 
ready for every good work, and her labours of love were blessed 
to many. As a class-leader she was diligent, faithful, and suc- 
cessful. The Word of God was her daily companion ; and she 
was accustomed to sing — 

' ' O may the gracious words divine 
Subject of all my converse be : 
So will the Lord his follower join, 
And walk and talk Himself with me." 

By her life, she taught her family how to live, and in her death, 
which took place at Hammersmith, showed how peacefully the 
Christian can die. Her last words were, speaking of heaven, 
" My treasure and my heart is there." 

Music, which has been the charm of so many, has been the 
snare of many more. Samuel Potter, of Culmstock, Devon, was 
for some years a member of the choir in the parish church, and 
often during that period resisted the strivings of the Spirit of 
God, by his love of the frivolity of his companions. A letter 
containing earnest godly advice, from a relative of his, the 
venerable John Moon, one of the early Methodist preachers, 
was to his guilty conscience like the message of Nathan to 
David ; he left his ungodly companions, joined the Methodists, 
found peace in believing, opened his house for preaching, and 
ever afterwards devoted his best efforts to the extension of the 
work of God. On the last Sabbath he spent on earth, he called 
his family together for evening prayer, and they sang at his 
request the whole of Cowper's hymn which begins — 

" God moves in a mysterious way." 

Having closed the devotions of the day, he sang for himself, as 
he had done on many previous occasions, the verse — 

" Oft as I lay me down to rest, 
O may the reconciling word 
Sweetly compose my weary breast ! 

While, on the bosom of my Lord, 
I sink in blissful dreams away, 
And visions of eternal day." 

He was very fervent in prayer the evening before he died, and 
rested peacefully during the night. Rising in the morning 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 329. 



refreshed, he cheerfully said, " Well, I think my work is almost 
done," and before he left his bed-side, the messenger of mercy 
arrived, he quietly sank down on the bed, and fell asleep in the 
Lord. Crowds from the surrounding villages attended his 
funeral to do honour to the memory of a useful godly man. 

Methodism was introduced into Beeston, chiefly through the 
residence there of Mr and Mrs Kirkland. When residing in 
Nottingham, Mrs Kirkland was brought to Christ by means of 
a sermon preached in Halifax Place Chapel, by the Rev. Edward 
Hare. In 1819, on removing to Beeston, Mr Kirkland opened a 
room on his ground for preaching. The cause grew and 
prospered, until a large chapel was erected, in which twelve 
classes of members were gathered, and a large Sunday-school 
established. Two of these classes were met by Mrs Kirkland, 
whose life was marked by so many of the fruits of the Spirit, 
that one of her neighbours said of her, " she had for many years 
lived next door to heaven, and had only to step over the thresh- 
hold." During many of her later years, she every evening 
repeated the verse — 

" Rising to sing my Saviours praise, 

Thee may I publish all day long ; 
And let Thy precious word of grace 

Flow from my heart, and fill my tongue ; 
Fill all my life with purest love, 
And join me to the Church above." 

That prayer was fulfilled in her life : and after a short illness, 
she departed to be " for ever with the Lord." 

Hymn 329. — "Thee, Jesus, full of truth and grace." — The Trial 
of Faith. — Tune, Wednesbury, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749? 
vol. ii., No. 18. The original is in two double verses, and is 
evidently founded on the fiery trial of the three Hebrew children 
in Babylon and their astonishing deliverance. 

" The doctrine of a particular providence," observes Mr D. 
Creamer, " which breathes throughout Charles Wesley's poetry, 
is very forcibly expressed in the second stanza of this hymn — 
1 We now Thy guardian presence own, 
And walk unburn'd in fire/ " 
This hymn commences the sixth section of the book, with the 
title, " For Believers Suffering." 



Hy. 329.] and its Associations. 



185 



At the early age of twelve, John Elam, of Fartown, Hudders- 
neld, gave himself to the Lord, and ever afterwards, his 
unceasing efforts to do good gave abundant evidence of a 
renewed heart. He became a useful Sunday-school teacher, a 
successful local preacher, and for a few years was an earnest 
preacher in the itinerant ministry. When seized by illness, he 
continued to preach till within fourteen days of his death. 
His sufferings were severe, but borne with Christian fortitude. 
Shortly before he died, he lifted his eyes toward heaven, and 
began to repeat the hymn — 

" Thee, Jesus, full of truth and grace," &c. 
On coming to the third verse, he changed the pronoun, and 
continued the hymn with emphasis thus — 

" Thee, Son of Man, by faith I see, 
And glory in my guide, 
Surrounded and upheld by Thee, 
The fiery test abide," &c. 

In this spirit of resignation, he waited but a few hours longer, 
and the spirit returned to God who gave it. 

When about sixteen years of age, Miss Barritt, wife of the 
Rev. J. W. Barritt, was enabled to give her heart to the Lord, 
and her life to His service. Cheerfully relinquishing the 
pleasures of the gay, in which she had found delight, she left 
all that was merely worldly to follow the Lord. When she 
became a pastor's wife, she found many ways of usefulness in 
the Church; and she was especially helpful in forming new 
classes, and many members whom she gathered into the fold 
will, in the last day, be the crown of her rejoicing. She 
patiently endured illness for three months ; and when conscious 
that her end was near, she summoned her family for a farewell 
act of worship. Hymn 329 she selected to be sung, and on 
coming to the last verse, her voice was heard clearly and dis- 
tinctly singing forth — 

11 The fire our graces shall refine, 

Till, moulded from above, 
We bear the character divine, 

The stamp of perfect love." 
This was her last song upon earth ; shortly after, her speech 
failed, and she quietly passed into the heaven of rest. 



i86 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [ Hy. 332. 



Hymn 330.— " Saviour of all, what hast Thou done!" — The 
Trial of Faith. — Tune, 23d Psalm, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 6 of u Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. There is a mighty power of poetic 
imagination in this fine hymn, particularly in the closing lines — 

" I take my last triumphant flight 
From Calvary's to S ion's height" 

An " old disciple," of a cheerful disposition, was John Web- 
ster, of Leeds. Having good health, an active mind, an intense 
love to Christ, and an anxious desire to bring sinners to Christ, 
he devoted himself, and much of his income, to promoting the 
cause of God. He joined the Methodist Society in 1780, and 
was a class-leader for forty years. On one Sunday afternoon, he 
met his class with more than his usual fervour and affection. 
In the evening he attended the service at Brunswick Chapel, in 
good health, and joined heartily in singing the concluding verse 
of Hymn 330 — 

" This is the strait and royal way 

That leads us to the courts above," &c. 

He knelt down with the congregation to pray, and whilst so 
engaged he was heard to groan, and, without speaking a word 
he ceased to breathe. 

Hymn 331. — "Thou, Lord, hast blest my going out." — After a 
Journey. — Tune, Leeds, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 128. In the original, three hymns follow each other — " On 
a Journey," hymn 214; "After a Journey," hymn 331 ; "At 
Lying Down," hymn 227. 

Hymn 332. — " Master, I own Thy lawful claim."—//" any man 
will come after me. — Tune, Marienbourn, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 13. The original has eleven verses, six of which 
are omitted, and in some of them the more glaring sins of that 
age as well as of this, are fearlessly exposed. 



Hy. 333.] 



and its Associations. 



187 



Hymn 333. — " Come on, my partners in distress." — For the 
Brotherhood. — Tune, Snowsfields, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 22 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The third verse of the original is left out. 

This hymn is distinguished for its special adaptation to the 
circumstances of the tried and suffering people of God. Mont- 
gomery says of the hymn that it anticipates the strains of the 
redeemed, " and is written almost in the spirit of the Church 
triumphant.'' Two or three only out of many examples, illus- 
trative of the value of this hymn, can be here given ; others will 
be found referred to in the Biographical Index. 

Under date of " Coleraine, June 7, 1778," Mr Wesley writes 
particulars of u a pleasing sight." A young gentlewoman entered 
into the Methodist Society there, as the result of Mr Wesley's 
first preaching in that town in the open air. Unexpectedly 
meeting her sister in the preaching-room, she fell upon her 
neck, wept over her, and could only say, " O sister, sister !" and 
sank down on her knees to praise God. Both sisters were in 
tears, so were many others in the room ; Mr Wesley himself 
was so affected that he hastened into another apartment to con- 
ceal his emotion and to praise God. These two sisters were 
Ann Young and Isabella Young. Ann became the beloved 
wife of the estimable and venerable Henry Moore, one of Mr 
Wesley's executors; and Isabella became the wife of another 
excellent Methodist preacher, Thomas Rutherford. There did 
not live a person who stood higher in Mr Wesley's estimation, 
for every grace and virtue which can adorn humanity, than Ann 
Moore ; nor was she less beloved by Mrs Charles Wesley, Dr 
Adam Clarke, and by other distinguished Methodists who knew 
her. In her last illness she had no desire but " to depart and 
be with Christ and when, on one occasion, reference was 
made to some dear departed relatives, she said she should soon 
see them all in heaven ; and, addressing Mrs Rutherford, said, 
"Sing, 

1 Come on, my partners in distress, 
My comrades through the wilderness, 
Who still your bodies feel,' " &c. 

Nearly her last words to her husband were, " God is good ; 
God is love ; glory be to the Father, and to the Son, and to the 



188 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 333. 



Holy Ghost." She peacefully entered into rest, with a heavenly 
smile resting on her countenance ; and she lies buried, with 
her honoured husband, close to the east wall of City Road 
grave-yard, behind the chapel. 

Amongst the " noble army of martyrs," few will occupy a 
more prominent position than the missionary of the cross ; and 
amongst that self-denying band, few will take higher rank than 
those of Sierra-Leone. Three successive terms of service in 
Western Africa were undertaken and completed by Thomas 
Dove. Up to that period, 1846, no missionary had rendered so 
much service in that terrible climate, and escaped with his life. 
He was converted in early life, received his first ticket from the 
Rev. John Gaulter, when president of the Conference, became a 
useful local preacher, and was encouraged by the Rev. Dr Adam 
Clarke to offer himself for the mission work. The record of his 
labours, as furnished by his brethren, is an ample testimony 
that he loved the "happy toil," and was abundantly owned 
and blessed. Through the mercy of God, he was permitted 
to return to England, after seeing so many colleagues fall in the 
foreign field around him, and occupied several home circuits with 
acceptance ; but the toil of that service induced a somewhat 
premature termination of his useful labours. He bowed in 
submission to the Divine will ; and in his severest pain and 
weakness, only a short time before his death, he said — 

" Who suffer with our Master here, 
We shall before His face appear, 
And by His side sit down." 

On the day of his death he said, " I have not a cloud on my 
mind ; I die at peace with God and all mankind." Afterwards 
he said, " I shall soon be landed," and in twenty minutes he 
expired without a sigh. 

Amongst the connecting links uniting the Methodism of Mr 
Wesley with that of his immediate successors, none held a more 
useful position than Thomas Cordeux, the official printer to the 
connexion. Mrs Cordeux was a most excellent, useful, and 
exemplary Christian, in early life seeking the kingdom of heaven 
and its righteousness, and finding all other blessings attendant 
thereupon. Their journal is a most interesting record of Chris- 
tian experience. When illness had prostrated her strength, and 



Hy. 334.] 



and its Associations. 



death was near, she said, " Lord, I am Thine, and Thou art 
mine." Her husband, seeing that life was ebbing fast, said — 

" Your conflicts here will soon be past !" 

To which she most distinctly rejoined — 

" And you and I ascend at last, 
Triumphant with our Head." 
With these words she closed her earthly career. The venerable 
man, her husband, lived many years afterwards, and died 
triumphing through Christ. 

In the Wesleyan Magazine is an account of Miss Barbara 
Jewitt, of whom we read as follows : " On the day of her death 
she was sitting in the chair, in which she had sat for three weeks, 
and broke out into singing in a loud tone the delightful hymn — 

" * On Jordan's stormy banks I stand, 
And cast a wishful eye 
To Canaan's fair and happy land, 
Where my possessions lie.' t 

Her relatives were alarmed, for she had only been able to speak 
in a whisper for some weeks. After singing half-an-hour, she 
requested Hymn 383 to be given out — 

" 1 Come on, my partners in distress,' &c, 
in the singing of which she joined at intervals with earnestness. 
6 Sing on, sing on,' she frequently said to her friends. Then, 
as if talking to angelic spirits, she said, 4 Stay, stay, I am not 
ready yet.' She requested the hymn to be sung — 

" * O glorious hope of perfect love,' &c. 

Her sight now failed her, and she asked her friends to come 
nearer and sing on. Whilst they were thus engaged she waved 
her hand round in triumph, and with much emphasis sang — 
" * And makes me for some moments feast 
With Jesu's priests and kings.' 
She then fell back in her chair, and in a moment her spirit fled 
to the skies." 

Hymn 334.-—" Lord, I adore Thy gracious will.'—" The Lord hath 
said unto him, Curse David." — Tune, Snowsfields, 1761. 

Forms No. 519 of Charles Wesley's " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i., founded on 2 Sam. xvi. 10. 

Dr Adam Clarke gives frequent commendation of the poetry 



190 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 335. 



of Charles Wesley in his " Notes on the Bible ; " and on this 
short hymn the discriminating biblical critic makes these obser- 
vations in his notes on this passage of Holy Writ : " No soul 
of man can suppose that ever God bade one man to curse 
another, much less that he commanded such a wretch as Shimei 
to curse such a man as David ; but this is a peculiarity of the 
Hebrew language, which does not always distinguish between 
permission and commandment. Often the Scripture attributes 
to God what He only permits to be done, or what in the course 
of His providence He does not hinder. David, however, con- 
siders all this as being permitted of God for his chastisement 
and humiliation." The doctor then quotes this hymn with these 
words : " I cannot withhold from my readers a very elegant 
poetic paraphrase of this passage, from the pen of the Rev. 
Charles Wesley, one of the first of Christian poets." 

Hymn 335. — " Cast on the fidelity." — For a woman near the 
time of her travail, — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Forms one of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for a Family," page 
54. In the second verse there is a spirited personification of 
mercy, death, pain, and sorrow. 

Many who visited Margate a few years ago were struck, on 
entering the Wesleyan chapel, with the appearance of two 
brothers, both in the evening of life, one of whom read the 
liturgy with deep and reverent feeling, while the other led the 
responses of the congregation. One of these was George Rowe, 
who early gave his heart to the Lord, and became a useful 
member of the Methodist Society, conducting a class for nearly 
forty years, and serving the offices of Society and Circuit Steward 
with efficiency. W T hen laid aside by illness, he retained his 
confidence in God, and when near his end, his brother visited 
and prayed with him, and at the close of the prayer he uttered 
the beautiful lines — 

e< Cast on the fidelity Of my redeeming Lord, 

I shall His salvation see, According to His word : 
Credence to His word I give ; My Saviour in distresses past 
Will not now His servant leave, But bring me through at last." 

His faith was nourished by devout meditation and prayer, and 
in peace he entered heaven. 

One of the worthies of Methodism in Nottingham was Mr 
Sampson Biddulph, M.R.C.P. At the early age of eighteen, he 



Hy. 335 ] 



and its Associations. 



191 



was brought to a knowledge of the truth in the Methodist chapel 
at Hockley, was admitted on trial by the Rev. J. S. Pipe, and 
received his first member's ticket from the holy William Bram- 
well, who ever afterwards was his friend. He took an active 
part in the first missionary meeting held at Nottingham, and in 
whatever tended to spread the knowledge of divine truth, and 
promote personal holiness. The parties held in Methodism in 
his days were really means of grace ; the time was spent in 
Christian communion and in prayer ; this was their delight, 
and the secret of their power, and one result was, that often 
in those days from fifteen to twenty thousand members, and 
even more, were annually added to the Church. In his last 
illness, and on the last Sabbath he spent on earth, he said, " I 
now feel the power of grace to sustain me ; " and afterwards, 
whilst being supported in bed, he tried to repeat — 

" Cast on the fidelity Of my redeeming Lord, 
I shall His salvation see," &c. 

Here his voice failed ; but a friend read the hymn through, 
which eminently expressed the feelings of his heart, and in this 
spirit he departed, to be " for ever with the Lord." 

The parents of Mrs D. Bealey were both intimate personal 
friends of Mr Wesley in London. In early life she resided on 
the Continent, enduring many trials. Returning to England in 
1800, Miss Marsden became the wife of Mr Richard Bealey, of 
RadclirTe, near Manchester. During sixty years, this family has 
rendered most important and substantial help to Methodism in 
Bury, and around that locality. Mrs Bealey was called to suffer 
the separation from several members of her family, and ulti- 
mately her own health gave way, and this confined her much at 
home. Through these trials she found great consolation in 
reading the Scriptures and Wesley's Hymns. Every night she 
used to have two or three hymns read to her, until she could 
repeat them from memory. A few days before her death, whilst 
her sufferings were most acute, she was relieved by verses of 
Scripture or hymns. She frequently repeated two lines from 
her favourite hymn, the 335th — 

" To Thy bless' d will resign'd, 
And stay'd on that alone/' 

And when memory failed, every few minutes she would say, 



192 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 336. 



" Repeat my lines." In perfect calm, without a struggle, her 
redeemed spirit returned in triumph to God. 

Hymn 336. — " Father, in Thy name I pray." — For a Woman 
near the time of her travail. — TUNE, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for a Family," page 54. 
The first and second verses of the original are left out. Objec- 
tion has often been taken to the last line of the first verse, 
" And agony is heaven." The severity of the contrast implied 
in the language used we may become more reconciled to, when 
the design for which the hymn was written is known. This is ex- 
pressed in the title. Under any circumstances, can it be shown 
that * agony is heaven " ? 

The influence of Methodism, in promoting the salvation of 
the members of its homes, compares favourably with that 
of other sections of the Christian Church. One example of 
the truth of this opinion may be found in the blessed effect fol- 
lowing the home training in the domestic circle of Mr George 
Osborn, of Rochester. At the age of eighteen he gave his heart 
to the Lord, and during the rest of his life he became the most 
active and influential member of the Methodist society in his 
native city. On several occasions he had the privilege of meet- 
ing Mr Wesley, and on one of the visits of that excellent man 
to the locality, he walked with a few friends to one of the hills 
behind the town of Chatham, from which a delightful prospect 
of the surrounding country is obtained. All were pleased, and 
when they had freely expressed their admiration, Mr Wesley 
took off his hat and began to sing — 

" 1 Praise ye the Lord, 'tis good to praise,'" &c. 

When they had sung the hymn, they returned home ; but the 
lesson learned by Mr Osborn was, whenever he saw fine 
scenery, to praise, not the landscape only, but the Author of it 
also. When he was married, he had wished that the Rev. 
John Newton should perform the ceremony ; but the time 
not being favourable, the venerable city rector invited his 
two Chatham friends to tea with him, when a religious ser- 
vice was held, the happy effects of which were never for- 
gotten. Two of the sons of Mr Osborn — the Rev. George 
Osborn, D.D., and the Rev. James Osborn — have occupied no 
mean place in the Methodist ministry now for many years, and 



Hy. 337.] and its Associations. 



193 



some grandsons also are taking positions in the same sphere of 
labour. For thirty years Mr Osborn, sen., led the service of song 
in the Methodist chapel, Rochester, with propriety, and some- 
times with delightful effect. His love of psalmody was great 
and enduring ; and daily family worshio was never considered 
complete without a hymn. He held with acceptance and effici- 
ency at times every office of influence and trust in the Rochester 
Society. In his last illness, his preparation for the great change 
had not to be made ; he was ready to depart and to be with 
Christ. During the last few days of his life, he asked often for 
three favourite hymns to be read to him, the 336th, 616th, and 
624th. Nearly the last hymn which occupied his attention 
begins — 

" Father, in the name I pray 

Of Thy incarnate Love," &c. ; 

and nearly the last words he spoke were, " I will trust and not 
be afraid." 

From childhood, Mary Bailey, daughter of the Rev. John 
Nelson, was taught to walk in wisdom's ways ; and, when quite 
young, under a sermon preached by the Rev. Robert Newton, 
she was enabled to believe to the salvation of her soul. She 
was educated for the pursuit of school duties, but her health 
gave way ; yet she was very useful in helping to spread the 
knowledge of salvation where her lot was cast. Consumption 
cut short her earthly course ; but though her sufferings were 
severe, her prayer in the language of her favourite hymn was 
answered — 

"Father, Son, and Holy Ghost, 

For good remember me ! 
Me, whom Thou hast caused to trust 

For more than life on Thee : 
With me in the fire remain, 

Till like burnish' d gold I shine ; 
Meet, through consecrated pain, 

To see the face divine." 

She died in so much peace, that they who stood watching 
scarcely perceived when her happy spirit fled. 

Hymn 337.-—" Eternal Beam of Light Divine." — In Affliction. 
— Tune, Welling, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 

N 



194 



TJie Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 338. 



page 144. The power of the presence of Christ to comfort and 
heal is strongly set forth in the fourth verse. 

Whilst attending a social prayer-meeting at a friend's house, 
Elizabeth Calvert, afterwards wife of the Rev. Richard Johns, 
was made happy in the pardoning love of God when little more 
than eighteen years of age. Shortly after becoming the wife of 
a Methodist preacher, she had to take charge of a class, but ill- 
ness prevented her using so much active energy in the cause of 
religion as she desired She was a source of much help and 
comfort to the Rev. Philip Garrett during the sickness which 
ended his days on earth. As the leader of a class at Walworth 
she was made a blessing to many. When illness set in, she 
sought recovery in change, but she soon found that her earthly 
labours were drawing to a close. When life appeared to ebb 
away, and her friends in tears surrounded her, she would sud- 
denly break out in singing the verse of her favourite hymn — 

" Thankful I take the cup from Thee, 
Prepared and mingled by Thy skill ; 
Though bitter to the taste it be, 

Powerful the wounded soul to heal." 

Amongst her last words were these — " The Lord does sustain 
me," and " Mine eyes shall behold the Lamb." 

Hymn 338. — " Thou Lamb of God, Thou Prince of Peace. 
In Affliction or Pain. — TUNE, Purcells, 1761. 

John WesleVs translation, from the German of Christian 
Frederic Richter, and appears in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1739, page 145. The original has been attributed, in error, to 
both Tersteegen and Gerhardt. 

Dr Richter was born in 1676. He studied medicine, and 
afterwards divinity, at Halle, and in 1699 became medical ad- 
viser at Franke's Orphan-house in that town. Here he disco- 
vered a remarkable medicine which yielded him large profits, all 
which he gave to orphan-houses. He was a remarkably plain, 
simple man, bent only on doing good. He began to compose 
hymns at the age of twenty. He died at the early age of thirty- 
five, and left twenty-three hymns full of spiritual thoughts, and 
showing a deeply-contemplative Christian mind. 

For many years, John Bramwell, of Colne, lived a rigid 
Pharisee ; but under a Methodist sermon he was convinced of 
his sinful condition, and, after severe mental anguish, found 



Hy. 340.] and its Associations. 195 



pardon. He used to say that the 93d Hymn described his 
character and his conversion. He ever afterwards spent his 
time in advancing the cause of God. In his last illness he had 
settled peace of mind, and generally replied to inquiries in a 
verse of Scripture or of a hymn, some of which he much loved. 
To a friend who asked how he was, he replied — 

" When pain o'er my weak flesh prevails, 
With lamb-like patience arm my breast ; 
When grief my wounded soul assails, 
In lowly meekness may I rest. 5 ^ 

A few hours later, he whispered, " Well, well," and died in the 
Lord. 

After many years' laborious toil in the ministry of Methodism, 
the Rev. Daniel Jackson retired from the full work, after which 
he was severely afflicted, first by losing his sight, then his hear- 
ing, and lastly, by a painful spasmodic asthma. In the midst 
of these complicated sufferings he manifested Christian submis- 
sion, finding relief often by quoting the verse — 

64 Thou, Lord, the dreadful fight hast won ; 
Alone Thou hast the wine-press trod ; 
In me Thy strengthening grace be shown, 
O may I conquer through Thy blood ! " 

He afterwards added, " I have sweet peace, sweet confidence in 
God;" and with his last breath he calmly uttered, "Jesus, in 
death remember me." 

Hymn 339.— "O Thou, to whose all-searching sight."— The 
Believer's Support. — Tune, Pudsey, 1761. 

John Wesley's translation from the German of Count Zinzen- 
dorf, which was published first in his " Collection of Psalms and 
Hymns," 1738, and afterwards in the edition, enlarged, in 1739, 
page 154- 

HYMN 340. — "The thing my God doth hate." — Jeremiah xxxi. 
33 and xliv. 4. — Tune, Lampes, 1746. 

This hymn is made up of two of Charles Wesley's " Scripture 
Hymns" (1762), vol ii., Nos. 1240 and 1232. 

There is a remarkable thought in the third verse, " Soul of my 
soul." " Christ and the true believer become, as it were, iden- 
tified ; for he that is joined to the Lord, is one spirit." Sir 



196 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 342. 



Richard Blackmore has the same thought in his " Ode to the 
Divine Being'*' — ■ 

" Blest object of my love intense, 
I Thee my joy, my treasure call, 
My portion, my reward immense, 
Soul of my soul, my life, my all!'* 

This hymn commences the seventh section, with the title of 
" Seeking for Full Redemption." 

The death of the father of Robert Spanton, of Malton, was 
the cause of the son's conversion at about the age of eighteen, 
and for nearly fifty years he was a consistent member of the 
Methodist society, faithfully and lovingly filling the duties of 
class-leader, local preacher, and circuit steward during a great 
portion of that period. He never lost an opportunity to recom- 
mend religion to all he came in contact with ; declaring to a 
young gentleman on one occasion, that it afforded " pleasure in 
possession, pleasure in the retrospect, and pleasure in the pros- 
pect.'' He seemed to live in the spirit enjoyment of the text, 
" Rejoice evermore ; " and when, just before his pilgrimage was 
ended, he was unable to sing himself, he desired this verse to 
be sung to him — 

" Thy nature be my law, Thy spotless sanctity, 

And sweetly every moment draw My happy soul to Thee. 
Soul of my soul remain ! Who didst for all fulfil, 

In me, O Lord, fulfil again Thy heavenly Father's will." 

" Yes," he said, " there is more divinity in that one verse than 
some persons write in their life-time." Nearly his last whisper 
was, " My heavenly Father calls me. Glory, glory !" 

Hymn 341. — " O Jesus, let Thy dying cry." — Matt xxvii. 46, and 
Ezek. xxxvi. 26. — Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

This is formed of two of Charles Wesley's " Scripture Hymns" 
(1762), Nos. 269 and 1269, based on Matt, xxvii. 46, and Ezek. 
xxxvi. 26. 

Hymn 342. — " God of eternal truth and grace." — Perfect Love. 
— Tune, Mitcham, 1781. 

This hymn is formed by joining three of Charles Wesley's 
"Scripture Hymns" (1762), Nos. 1376, Micah vii. 20; 174, 
Matt. xv. 28 ; 297, Mark ix. 23. 



Hy. 343-] 



and its Associations. 



197 



Hymn 343. — " O for a heart to praise my God !" — " Make me a 
Clean Heart? &c— Tune, St Paul's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems" 1742, 
page 80, founded on Psalm li. 10. 

The holy John Fletcher, of Madeley, says of this hymn, 
" Here is undoubtedly an evangelical prayer for the love which 
restores the soul to a state of sinless rest and scriptural per- 
fection." 

Faint not, Christian, though the way be dreary, and though 
clouds and gloom be spread around — there is light above and 
beyond. Just one hundred years ago, when John Hampson 
and Robert Pillmore were itinerating in and around Notting- 
ham, and Messrs Warwick, Willis, Kerring, and Jeffries, as local 
preachers, were carrying the word of life with them to the out- 
lying villages, the prospect of success was so cheerless that one 
day, after preaching, one of the above-named local brethren said, 
as they had visited the place Calverton so long, and no apparent 
good had been done, they purposed to discontinue the preaching 
at that place. The word had taken hold of some hearts, and 
amongst the persons thus blest was Mrs Morley, who, fearing to 
be deprived of the privileges of the gospel altogether, told the 
preacher that he had been mistaken, that good had been done, that 
she, with others, desired their visits ; and thereupon these few 
sisters in the Lord were formed into a society, which has con- 
tinued in that place ever since. By the preaching of the word, 
Mrs Morley had been convinced of her sinful state ; by the 
other means of grace which were set up, the class and prayer 
meeting, she found peace through believing in Jesus, and lived 
through fourscore years and five to testify to the power of 
Christ to forgive sin, and to keep the believer from falling. 
When, shortly before her death, she was asked if Christ was 
precious to her, she promptly replied, " O yes, precious indeed 
and then, with uncommon energy in her manner, she said — 
* ' O for a heart to praise my God, 

A heart from sin set free ! 
A heart that always feels Thy blood 

So freely spilt for me ! " 
And delighted to dwell on the last appropriating word, " For me, 
for me !" With this assurance, her happy spirit went to keep 
an eternal Sabbath before the throne of God. 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 343. 



Religion does not exempt a man from trials, but it does supply 
him with needful grace to help him to endure and overcome 
them. Ball-Green, Sowerby, was known during the greater part 
of a century as the home for the Methodist preachers on their 
visits to that place ; and in the dwelling of John Haigh (whose 
wife was sister to the Rev. Matthew Lumb, and mother-in-law 
to the Rev. John Aslin), not a few of the early presidents of the 
Conference found a hearty welcome. This good man was 
often in the furnace of trial, yet, though he lived through ninety 
winters save one, he lost not his confidence in God ; and in all 
his trials he delighted in the ordinances of religion, and in the 
spiritual conversation of the Lord's people. In his last affliction 
he had settled peace, and shortly before his speech failed him, 
he repeated very earnestly the verses — 

" O for a heart to praise my God ! " &a 

And also — • 

" A heart in every thought renew d, 
And full of love divine ; 
Perfect, and right, and pure, and good ; 
A copy, Lord, of thine ! " 

He added, " This will do, and nothing else;" and in that spirit 
he entered into rest. 

Clustering round this hymn are other memories sacred and 
precious, which it is difficult to pass by. One of Mr Wesley's 
chosen class and band leaders in London was Mrs Langford, 
whose husband was a local preacher in the last century, and of 
whose trial sermon, Mr Bradburn reported to the founder of 
Methodism, "he preached like a prince." The Sunday morning 
prayer meeting now held in Lambeth Chapel vestry was com- 
menced by Mrs Langford in her kitchen ; and the first female 
class formed in Lambeth owes its origin to this godly woman. 
Her daughter Mary began to meet in class when about twelve 
years old, and for more than sixty successive years she remained 
in fellowship with the same people, and maintained an un- 
blemished reputation. When very young she became one of 
the collectors for the building of City Road Chapel, and con- 
tinued the good work till local claims diverted the flow of her 
generous sympathy. In 1791 Mary Langford became the 
wife of Mr Corderoy, and afterwards the mother of Messrs 
John, Edward, George and William Corderov. all of whom were 



Hy. 344.] 



and its Associations. 



199 



or are honoured and useful members and officers of the Methodist 
Societies in London. Her husband was placed in a position of 
trust and responsibility under the Government, but it involved 
the employment of many workmen on the Sabbath-day. To 
this Mr Corderoy not only demurred, but positively declined to 
work himself, choosing rather the fear and love of God than the 
fear of any man, even the sovereign himself ; it involved the 
breaking of the Divine law. His integrity as a man was as 
great as his resolution to keep the Sabbath was firm ; and his 
firmness of character was rewarded by his being exempted from 
work on the Lord's Day, and by his having still greater confi- 
dence and responsibility reposed in him. In these things he was 
supported and encouraged by his excellent wife, who, after she 
became a widow, continued to maintain an unwavering confidence 
in God. " The Lord sustains you, dear mother," said one of her 
children on the morning of her death. Her lips moved in prayer, 
" The Lord support me." Shortly afterwards she added with 
emphasis, " The Lord Jehovah is my strength." One of her last 
acts was to take her purse, and with her own hand pay for a 
Bible to be used in the pulpit of a Primitive Methodist Chapel 
in a village where she had lately visited. Immediately after- 
wards, at her request, Psalm ciii. was read to her. On coming 
to the 17th verse the reader said, "You see, dear mother, the 
promises are to your children and grandchildren." Her reply 
was, " They must seek the Lord." She then began— 

" O for a heart to praise my God ! " 

but could not get through even the first line. Her child caught 
up the strain and finished the verse ; a smile was the only 
reward the sufferer could bestow, as the departing spirit entered 
paradise. 

Hymn 344.— "Thou hidden love of God, whose height."— 
Divine Love. — Tune, Careys, 1761. 

John Wesley's translation of a German hymn, written by 
Gerard Tersteegen. It first appeared in the collection of 
"Psalms and Hymns," 1738, also in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1739. 

John Wesley, in his " Plain Account of Christian Perfection," 
records that he wrote (translated) this hymn while at Savannah, 
Georgia, in the year 1736, and he quotes the line in verse four, 



200 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 345. 



commencing—" Is there a thing beneath the sun," to show his 
religious sentiments at that period. Dr Southey, confusing 
dates, gives the affection for Grace Murray as the origin of 
this hymn. Mr B. Love, in his " Records of Wesleyan Life," 
describes this hymn as the pious contemplation of a soul 
seeking for full redemption. In a translated " Life of Ters- 
teegen," by the Rev. Samuel Jackson, a version of this hymn is 
given with two verses, the fourth and fifth, more than John 
Wesley had translated. 

Gerard Tersteegen was born November 25, 1697, in the town 
of Mors, in Westphalia, and was the son of a godly tradesman, 
who died soon after his birth. He early showed great talents, 
and made progress at school ; but his mother's circumstances 
compelled him to go to business instead of the University at 
the age of fifteen. At sixteen the grace of God reached his 
heart, and soon afterwards, in a remarkable manner, he sur- 
rendered himself to God, and became unspeakably happy. 
Though poor himself he gave much to the poor, so that he was 
often in want. At the age of thirty he began to exhort in 
private meetings, and soon became widely known from the 
simplicity, power, and excellence of his addresses. He began 
to travel and to address large audiences, chiefly on the love of 
God, till his health failed. He belonged to no sect, though the 
Moravians tried to secure him. He gradually became so weak 
as to look like a corpse, but he continued his labours till he was 
seventy-three, when dropsy set in, and he died April 3, 1769. 
He left in hymns, chiefly on three subjects — namely, " Lo, God 
is here," " God in us," and " Communion with God and Christ." 
This hymn, No. 344, was written by Tersteegen in 1 731, and was 
originally in eight verses, of which John Wesley translated six. 
This is a decided favourite, and is printed in all the Wesleyan 
collections — in Mercer's "Church Psalter," in Roundell Palmer's 
" Book of Praise," and also in the Moravian collection, No. 669, 
where it will be found in another rendering, and in the original 
metre. 

Hymn 345, — "Ye ransom'd sinners, hear/' — Rejoicing in Hope. — 
Tune, Resurrection, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacrec^ Poems," 1742, 
page 180. The second verse of the original is left out, and the 



Hy. 346.] 



and its Associations. 



201 



first line of the original is altered from " Ye happy sinners, 
hear," but the alteration was made after John Wesley's death. 

Hymn 346. — " For ever here my rest shall be." — Christ oti? 
Righteousness. — Tune, Wednesbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 96. The original has seven verses, the first, commencing, 
"Jesus, Thou art my righteousness," and the second, are left 
out. It is also inserted in John Wesley's " Select Hymns with 
Tunes" in the " Sacred Melody," 1761, with the tune " Spital- 
fields." 

That excellent, godly woman, Martha Lessey, wife of the Rev. 
Theophilus Lessey, and mother of the President of the Confer- 
ence of that name, walked closely with her God by a life of 
true piety, evincing the genuineness of her religion by fruits of 
righteousness which are by Christ Jesus. In her last illness, 
and shortly before her death, when assailed by her spiritual 
enemy, she often cried out — 

" For ever here my rest shall be, 
Close to Thy bleeding side, 
This all my hope, and all my plea, 
For me the Saviour died." 

Her end of life was a triumph of joy. 

One of the many losses of those self-denying men, the 
missionaries to Shetland, was the death of Mrs Allen, wife 
of the Rev. Richard Allen, at North Mavin. She gave her 
heart to God in early youth, and served him faithfully to the 
end of her days. When conscious of her end, she wished once 
more to see and bless her children ; but as seas rolled and 
mountains rose between her and the desire of her heart, she 
bowed in submission to the will of God. Amongst her last 
words she said — " My anchor is cast within the veil" — 
" For ever here my rest shall be, 

Close to Thy bleeding side," &c. 

and when articulation was failing she whispered, " the mer- 
cies of God," and entered paradise. 

A veteran of fourscore years, and of fifty-five years' service 
in the Methodist ministry, was John Reynolds of Penzance, 
Cornwall. He began to travel in 1799 with Dr Bunting and 
Dr Newton, and laboured with zeal and acceptance whilst 



202 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 347. 



health was continued to him. He died just before the Con- 
ference, to which body he sent this message two days before 
he died — " Tell the Conference I die in peace, in love to the 
preachers and the connexion. I am going into eternity glorying 
in the cross of Christ ! 

' This all my hope, and all my plea, 
For me the Saviour died.' " 

He left most of his property to the funds of Methodism, and 
died in much peace. 

Miss Frances Dalby, of Newark, was converted to God in 
early life under a sermon preached by Squire Brooke. She had 
a fine talent for music, but for some years she had been nearly 
blind. On the last Sunday she spent on earth she requested her 
sister to play her a tune once more, and to sing the hymn com- 
mencing, 

" For ever here my rest shall be," 
adding, " I shall sing it too." Her sister having re-entered the 
room where she lay, she said, " You managed your part better 
than I did mine. I could only sing, 

i For ever here my rest shall be ; ' 99 

but she added with emphasis, " I shall remain close to the bleed- 
ing side of my Saviour." And so she passed away in peace. 
But just before her departure, she had glorious manifestations of 
the Divine presence to cheer her in the dark valley. 

A poor but industrious man named Martin, who lived near 
Leeds, had been valiant for Satan, but after his conversion was 
as earnest for his Saviour. It was his custom, on returning 
home from his work in the evening, to have a thorough washing, 
and whilst doing so he continued to sing the third verse of 
Hymn 346 : — 

" Wash me, and make me thus Thine own, 
Wash me, and mine Thou art ; 
Wash me, but not my feet alone, 
My hands, my head, my heart." 

Several other examples of the use of this hymn will be found 

named in the index. 

Hymn 347.— "Jesus, my life! Thyself apply."— Christ our 
Sanctification. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems, 99 1740, 



Hy. 350.] 



and its Associations. 



203 



page 97. The last verse of the original is left out. It is also 
printed in John Wesley's " Select Hymns with Tunes anriext," 
1 761, in the " Sacred Melody," with the tune " Spitalfields." 

Hymn 348. — " Heavenly Father, sovereign Lord." 
» 349. — " Where the ancient Dragon lay." 
Isaiah xxxv. — Tune, Hotham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 107. The original is in twenty four-line stanzas, and was 
divided after Mr Wesley's death. 

Hymn 350. — "Holy Lamb, who Thee receive." — Redemption 
Found. — Tune, Savannah, 1761. 

John Wesley's translation, made in 1740, from the German of 
Anna Dober, originally written in 1735. I* was published in 
"Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, page 93. The German was 
written for a children's school-feast. The eighth and ninth 
verses are not translated. It is a fine embodiment of sound 
scriptural doctrine. 

When Oldham was part of the Manchester circuit in Metho- 
dism, and Thomas Tennant the stationed preacher in 1790, 
Hannah Mills received her first ticket of membership ; and for 
half a century her walk was such as became the gospel of 
Christ. In her last illness her mind was kept in perfect peace, 
and she often called on her friends to help her to praise the 
Lord. The day before she died, she was favoured with a special 
sight of the heavenly world ; whereupon she said, " If the Lord 
will but allow me to spend my next Sabbath in heaven, I will 
praise Him louder than any that are there. Oh that I could 
sing ! I would sing my favourite verse, — 

" Dust and ashes though 1 r<» 
Full of sin and misery.'" 

Then, after a pause, she repeated the third and fourth lines with 
great emphasis, — 

" Thine I am, Thou Son of God, 
Take the purchase of Thy blood." 

Shortly afterwards, robed in righteousness divine, she entered 
the New Jerusalem abo - 



204 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 353* 



Hymn 351.— "Come, Holy Ghost, all-quickening fire !" — Hymn 
to God the Sanctifier. — Tune, York, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 45. 

Hymn 352. — "Jesus, Thou art our King ! " — Hymn to Christ the 
King. — Tune, Irene, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 174. 

Hymn 353. — " O Jesu, source of calm repose ! "—Christ Protect- 
ing and Sanctifying. — Tune, 113th Psalm, 1761. 

From " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a g e r ^ r ? trans- 
lated by John Wesley from the German of John Anastasius 
Freylinghausen. This hymn throws much light on the doctrine 
of Christian perfection ; but the petition in verse five, 

" No anger may'st Thou ever find," 

must be understood as referring only to sinful anger, and not as 
condemning all anger whatever ; for it is a precept, Be ye 
angry, and sin not. 

John Anastasius Freylinghausen was born December 2, 1670, 
at Gundersheim, in the small principality of Wolfenbiittel, 
where his father was a tradesman and the burgomaster. His 
pious mother early taught him the truths of Christianity. In 
1689 he entered the University of Jena, but in 1692 he removed 
to Halle under A. H. Francke, and became his assistant-minister 
at Glancha, near Halle. In 1 715 he was raised to the assistant 
charge of St Ulric's Church, Halle, and married his god-child, 
Francke's only daughter, with whom he lived in great peace and 
blessedness. On the death of Francke in 1723, Freylinghausen 
was appointed chief minister of St Ulric's, and director of the 
Orphan Houses. He suffered much from most violent tooth- 
ache, during which, however, he composed some of his best 
hymns. In 1 737 his tongue became paralysed, and he had to give 
up preaching. He died February 12, 1739. He left the Church 
a legacy of forty-four hymns which are full of sound piety and 
tender godliness, combined with great beauty and warmth of 
expression. Freylinghausen was the chief hymn- writer of the 
pietist school in Germany, and collected the best hymns of all 



Hy. 358.] and its Associations. 205 

the poets belonging to that class of writers, together with their 
tunes, in a large book of two volumes, the first edition dated 
1704, the second 1714 : it was designed chiefly for the use of 
the Orphan Houses at Halle. 

Hymn 354. — " Ever fainting with desire." — A Prayer for Holi- 
ness. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 219. The original has ten verses, four of which are left 
out. 

Hymn 355. — " Jesu, shall I never be." — " Let this mind be in you 
which was also in Christ Jesus T — Tune, Plymouth, 1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 221, based on Phil. ii. 5. The original has twenty verses, 
seven of which are omitted. The line in verse nine, 
" I shall have no power to sin," 

has been supposed to inculcate the doctrine of final perseverance 
of the saints, but really it seems to be no more than a little extra 
fervour in the poet's feelings. 

Hymn 356.—" Lord, I believe Thy every word." — " They that 
wait upon the Lord shall renew their strength." — Tune, 
Wenvo, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 225, founded on Isaiah xl. 31. The original has fourteen 
stanzas, four of which are omitted. 

Hymn 357.— "Jesus, the Life, the Truth, the Way."— "Thy will 
be done on earth? &c. — Tune, Brooks, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 230. The original has twelve verses, four of which are 
omitted. It is founded on part of the Lord's Prayer, Matt, 
xi. 10. 

Hymn 358. — " Open, Lord, my inward ear." — Waiting for Christ 
the Prophet — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 206, with the first verse omitted. 



206 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 360. 



Hymn 359— ."God of Israel's faithful three/— The Three 
Children in the fiery furnace. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 210, founded on Daniel iii. The second verse of the 
original is left out. 

Hymn 360. — " Father of Jesus Christ, my Lord/—" Therefore 
it is of faith, that it might be by grace. — Tune, Bexley, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 248, founded on Romans iv. 13, &c. The original has 
twenty verses, nine of which are left out. The poet seeks with 
much care to guard this hymn against the faith of the Anti- 
nomian ; hence the faith of which he writes is obedient faith ; 
it waits on God in a diligent use of the means of grace. 

In early life, Fanny Wedgwood, of Wybunbury, Nantwich, 
was converted to God ; she joined the Methodist Society, 
and walked circumspectly. A rapid consumption cut short 
her earthly career. Her sleepless nights were occupied in holy 
meditation, prayer, and praise. A little before her death she 
exclaimed — 

"Faith, mighty faith, the promise sees, 
And looks to that alone ; 
Laughs at impossibilities, 
And cries, It shall be done ! " 

" I shall go to heaven ; the promise cannot fail so she slept in 
Jesus. 

Mrs Riles, wife of the Rev. John Riles, suffered a painful 
affliction with exemplary patience. Her husband praying by 
her bedside, she joined heartily, and at the close exclaimed, 
with great emotion — 

4 ' Faith, mighty faith, the promise sees, 
And looks to that alone ; 
Laughs at impossibilities, 

And cries, It shall be done ! " 

Adding, " I long to be gone," and her wish was very soon after- 
wards granted. 



Hy. 367.] 



and its Associations. 



207 



Hymn 361. — " My God! I know, I feel Thee mine."— Against 
hope, believing in hope. — Tune, Mitcham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 156. The eleventh verse of the original is left out. 

Hymn 362. — " Be it according to Thy word." — " He that loseth 
his life for My sake shall find //."—Tune, St Paul's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 212. The original has twelve verses, three of which are 
omitted. 

Hymn 363. — "What ! never speak one evil word." — James 
iii. 2 ; and Psalm ciii. 3. — Tune, Evesham, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Scripture Hymns," 1762. The first 
and second verses form No. 753 (James iii. 2) ; the third and 
fourth verses form No. 854 (Psalm ciii. 3). 

Hymn 364. — " Jesus, the gift divine I know." — John iv. 10, 14 ; 
and James i. 27. — TUNE, 123d Psalm, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Scripture Hymns," 1762. Verses 
1 and 2 form No. 413 (John iv. 10, 14) ; verses 3, 4, and 5 form 
No. 738 (James i. 27). "A fine hymn," writes Mr Bunting; 
" but patched up and disjointed, and requires emendation." 

1 Hymn 365. — " O God of my salvation, hear." 

" 366. — " I soon shall hear thy quick'ning voice." 
A Thanksgiving. — Tune, York, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 167. The original forms but one hymn of eighteen stanzas, 
four of which are left out ; it was not divided till after Mr 
Wesley's death. " Several lines in this hymn," writes Mr 
Bunting, " lame and bad." 

Hymn 367.— "O come, and dwell in me."—" Seeking for full 
Redemption. — Tune, Olney, 1761. 

The original forms three of Charles Wesley's " Scripture 
Hymns, 1762, vol. ii. Verse 1 forms No. 619 (2 Cor. iii. 17); 
verse 2 forms No. 578 (2 Cor. v. 17) ; verse 3 forms No. 713 
(Hebrews xi. 5). 

The mother of Mr James Musgrave, of Leeds, was a Methodist 



208 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 367. 



for sixty years, and her father was one of the first members of 
Society in that town. James Musgrave was brought to God 
during a revival in 1797, when he was twenty years of age. 
His convictions of sin were so deep, he retired into a field to 
plead with God for pardon, and there he found it. Forty-six 
years afterwards, at a band meeting, he testified to the reality 
of the change of heart he then underwent. Several hundred 
young persons were brought to God in that revival, and amongst 
them was the Rev. James Blackett, and the father of the Rev. 
Robert Spence Hardy. A class formed of these young men 
was taken in charge by the Rev. William Inglis, whose judicious 
counsels greatly contributed to their establishment in the faith. 
One of his valued admonitions was, " When the world assaults 
you, watch and pray ; when the flesh, flee and pray ; when the 
devil, fight and pray." He was successively appointed a local 
preacher, class-leader, and trustee of several chapels, in which 
duties he acted with fidelity and judgment. Oxford Place Chapel 
owes much to his activity, diligence, and benevolence ; and a 
tablet to honour his memory is erected within that edifice. He 
was present at the great Centenary Meeting held in Manchester 
in 1839, and his portrait is engraved in the great picture com- 
memorating that event. On Sunday, May 6, 1844, he attended 
the seven o'clock morning prayer meeting at the Oxford Place 
Chapel, and shared in conducting the service. He selected and 
gave out hymn 367 — 

" O come, and dwell in me, Spirit of power within ! " 
With impressive earnestness he gave out the last verse— 
" I want the witness, Lord, That all I do is right, 
According to Thy will and word, Well-pleasing in Thy sight 
I ask no higher state : Indulge me but in this ; 
And sooner or later then translate To my eternal bliss." 

With the giving out of that hymn, and its accompanying prayer, 
his public work for God on earth may be said to have closed. 
He attended the forenoon service at the chapel, and in the 
evening was proceeding to the same place, when he was seen 
by a person in the street to stagger, and fall. Medical assist- 
ance was obtained in a few minutes, but life was extinct ; disease 
of the heart had translated the Lord's servant, "to sing the 
Lamb in hymns above." 
The pioneer mother of Methodism in South Africa was Ann 



Hy. 369.] 



and its Associations. 



209 



Shaw, the excellent wife of the Rev. William Shaw. Early in 
life she sought and found the Lord. The Rev. J. Wilcox, curate 
of Long Sutton, was the immediate cause of her conversion, but 
it was at a Methodist prayer-meeting that she found peace 
through believing. In South Africa there are multitudes to 
witness how holily, and justly, and unblamably, she lived during 
a long life afterwards. In 1854 she was seized with paralysis. 
The last entries she was able to make in her journal were the 
following : — 

1 ' O come and dwell in me ! 

And make my heart Thy loved abode, 
The temple of indwelling God." 

These indicate the devout and heavenly state of her mind. She 
breathed her spirit quietly into the hands of God. 

The brother of Ann Pennington was for a time a servant in 
the family of R. C. Brackenbury, Esq., of Raithby Hall, where 
he learned the way of God perfectly, and returned to his native 
village full of love to perishing sinners, and several members of 
his family became converted. Ann, soon after her conversion, 
was married to a local preacher, Samuel Pennington, who was 
for many years at the head of the Lincoln plan. They licensed 
their house for preaching, and in every way sought to promote 
the glory of God. During her last affliction she often quoted — 
"'I want the witness, Lord, That all I do is right, 
According to Thy will and word, Well-pleasing in Thy sight.' " 

Her last words to her daughter were, " Happy, happy l" 

Hymn 368. — " Father, see this living clod." — Seeking for full 
Redemption. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

This is formed out of several of Charles Wesley's " Scripture 
Hymns," 1762 ; verse 1 forms No. 8 (Gen. ii. 7) ; verse 2 forms 
No. 197 (Lev. xxvi. 13); verse 3 forms No. 55 (Gen. xvii. 1) ; 
and verse 4 forms No. 5 (Gen. i. 26). 

Hymn 369.—" O God, most merciful and true ! "—Ezekiel xvi. 
62, 63. — Tune, Athlone, 1761. 

This forms No. 1258 of Charles Wesley's " Scripture Hymns," 
1762, vol. ii., where it is printed in three double stanzas. 

An appreciative writer in the Wesley a?i Magazine, 1839, page 
382, refers this hymn " to one of a class including everything 

O 



210 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 371. 



that is contained in communion with God, whether of prayer or 
praise. It is free from figurative language : but how shall we 
express otherwise than in the language of the hymn itself the 
seraphic solemnity, the spirit of prayer, which are evinced in 
this composition — that prostration of soul before the Infinite 
Three-in-One, which none but the saved sinner can feel, and 
which seems to imitate that of the angels in heaven ? It is only 
the Spirit in the first, and those consecrated by Him in the 
second place, which can search into the deep things of God." 

Hymn 370. — " Deepen the wound Thy hands have made." — 
Seeking for full Redemption. — Tune, Brockmer, 1761. 
This is made up of two of Charles Wesley's " Scripture 
Hymns/' 1762, vol. i. Verses 1 and 2 form No. 342 (Deut. xxxii. 
39), and verses 3 and 4 form No. 869 (Psalm cxix. 96). 

Hymn 371. — " What now is my object and aim ?" — Seeking for 
full Rede?nption. — Tune, The Shepherd of Israel, 1761. 

This is made up of Nos. 805 and 810 of Charles Wesley's 
" Scripture Hymns," 1762, based on Psalm xxxix. 8, and xlii. 2, 
of the Prayer-book version. 

Mrs Agar, of York, mother of the Rev. Joseph Agar, was privi- 
leged with the special personal friendship of the founder of 
Methodism, who sojourned under her roof during his last visit 
to York. She had then two young children, on whose heads 
that venerable man of God laid his hands, and blessed them. 
Previous to her marriage, she had been privileged to attend the 
Conference at Leeds in 1784, when she was edified with the con- 
versations of Mr Wesley, Mr and Mrs Fletcher, Miss Ritchie, 
and others of Mr Wesley's special friends. She gave her heart 
to God in early life ; but after that Conference, religion was 
with her more than ever a reality. In her last illness her mind 
was kept with perfect peace. When a hope of her recovery was 
expressed by her friends, she answered, "For me to live is 
Christ, and to die is gain." And again, — " I am in great peace ; 
all is Rock ! 

' I thirst for a life-giving God, 

A God that on Calvary died ! 
I gasp for the stream of Thy love, 

The Spirit of rapture unknown : 
And then to re-drink it above, 

Eternally fresh from the throne.' " 



Hy. 373-] 



and its Associations. 



211 



Her last words were, " Jesus is precious ; He is with me in the 
valley." Thus her spirit peacefully entered into rest. 

Hymn 372. — " Give me the enlarged desire." — Seeking for full 
Redemption. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

This is No. 841 (Psalm lxxxi. 10) of Charles Wesley's " Scrip- 
ture Hymns," 1762. It was a favourite hymn of the Rev. John 
Fletcher's, when .president of Lady Huntingdon's College at 
Trevecca. At that time Mr Benson was the head-master of 
that college. 

Hymn 373. — "Jesu, Thy boundless love to me." — Living by 
Christ. — Tune, Cary's, 1761. 

John Wesley's translation of Paul Gerhardt's German hymn. 
It appears in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, and also in 
the United Brethren's Collection. The original has nineteen 
verses, seven of which are left out. For a notice of the author 
see under Hymn 23. Several verses of this hymn, and especially 
the last one, have been used as dying testimonies. 

The first Methodist who visited Prince Edward's Island is 
believed to have been Benjamin Chappel, whom Mr Wesley 
mentions in his "Journal," vol. hi., page 369 : — " Benjamin and 
William Chappel, who had been here (at Inverness) three 
months, were waiting for a vessel to return to London. They 
had met a few people every night to sing and pray together, 
and their behaviour, suited to their profession, had removed 
much prejudice." Benjamin was a wheelwright, and, going out 
to Prince Edward's Island, began to call upon the islanders to 
turn to God. He died as he had lived, rejoicing in his Saviour, 
and faintly singing with his expiring breath — 

" O Love, how cheering is thy ray ! 
All pain before thy presence flies." 

Before he died, he saw the cause of God established and pros- 
pering on the island. 

At the age of fourteen, Eleanor Dickinson received confirma- 
tion in the Church of England, and learned, by heart, prayers 
adapted to every circumstance of life. Wrapt in a cloak of 
self-righteousness, she continued till more than twenty, when 
she was induced to hear a sermon by the Rev. Thomas Hanby 
amongst the Methodists, under which she was convinced of her 
sinful state by nature. She began to pray, and earnestly sought 



212 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 373. 



the Lord, and entirely lost all recollection of the forms she 
she had learned by heart. She was invited to a class meeting, 
feeling, at the same time, that her heart was " as hard as the 
nether mill-stone." As she entered the room, the leader was 
giving out the verse, in Hymn 373 — 

" More hard than marble is my heart, 
And foul with sins of deepest stain ; 
But Thou the mighty Saviour art, 

Nor flow'd Thy cleansing blood in vain ; 
Ah ! soften, melt this rock, and may 
Thy blood wash all these stains away ! " 

These lines so exactly described her case, that she was greatly 
affected ; her mind was earnestly engaged in prayer, and before 
the meeting closed she was enabled to believe on the Lord 
Jesus Christ for pardon, and went home happy in God. After 
her marriage, she was providentially visited by Mrs Fletcher, 
who became an intimate friend, and they lived on terms of 
happy fellowship to the end of their lives, dying within a few 
days of each other. Mrs Dickinson was an example of all 
godliness, and the last words she was able to utter were in 
answer to the observation of her friend the Rev. Walter Griffith, 
" It is easy to die when the sting of death, which is sin, is 
drawn.'' She faintly whispered, "Yes, yes." Soon after, her 
redeemed spirit entered the mansions of the blessed. 

It is worthy of remark, that the same hymn was dwelt upon 
with evident delight by the same Walter Griffith when on the 
verge of eternity, just ten years afterwards. Being somewhat 
disappointed in the plans he had himself formed in youth, he 
sought revenge by a determined purpose to enter the army, but 
Divine Providence frustrated his plans ; and when his disap- 
pointment was deepest, he was led to hear a sermon by the Rev. 
Joseph Pilmoor, in Whitefriars , Street Chapel, Dublin, which re- 
sulted in his being received a member of the Methodist Society 
by that excellent minister. He was admitted on trial as a travel- 
ling preacher by the Irish Conference in 1784 ; and the account 
of the labours of this truly devoted servant of God in early 
life is a most interesting record, as found in the Methodist 
Magazine for 1827. In 18 13 he was elected President of the 
Conference, and continued to labour with great acceptance and 
usefulness till within a few months of his death. During his 
last illness he said to Dr Adam Clarke, " You know, Doctor, Mr 



Hy. 376.] 



and its Associations. 



213 



Pawson was disturbed by fears that when he and some others 
of the old preachers were removed, Methodism would come to 
nothing. I once told Mr Pawson that Methodism did not de- 
pend upon his life, or on that of any of the preachers ; that if it 
were a work of God, He would raise up men to carry it on. 
You see, Doctor," said Mr Griffith, with animation, " I spoke 
the truth : and never fear but that it will spread." Shortly be- 
fore he died, St John xiv. and Hymn 373 were read to him, after 
which he said, " What a sweet chapter and hymn are these 
which you have read !" and with particular delight he repeated 
the last verse of the hymn — 

" In suffering be Thy love my peace ; 
In weakness be Thy love my power ; 
And when the storms of life shall cease, 

Jesus, in that important hour, 
In death as life be Thou my guide, 
And save me, who for me hast died." 
His weakness became extreme ; but ere his spirit departed he 
raised his voice in holy triumph, and cried aloud, " Glory ! 
glory ! glory ! The blood of Jesus Christ cleanseth from all 
sin. I have gained the victory through the blood of the Lamb ! " 
With this testimony he peacefully closed his earthly career, and 
entered the rest of heaven. He was interred in Mr Wesley's 
grave at the City Road Chapel. 

Hymn 374. — " Come, Holy Ghost, all-quick'ning fat"— Hymn 
to the Holy Ghost, — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 184. The first verse is repeated, in the original, as the last. 

Hymn 375. — Saviour from sin, I wait to prove." — " Groaning 
for Redemption r — Tune, Psalm 112, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 80. The original forms one long hymn, in four parts, of 
which this forms the fourth, with the third verse omitted. 

Hymn 376. — " I want the Spirit of power within." — " Groaning 
for the Spirit of Adoption"— Tune, Bradford, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 131. The first verse of the original, which commences, 
" Father, if Thou my Father art," is omitted. 



214 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 384. 

Hymn 377. — " Father of everlasting grace" — For Whit-Sunday, 
—Tune, Psalm 113, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns of Petition and Thanksgiving 
for the Promise of the Father," 1746, page 3. 

Hymn 378. — " What shall I do my God to love ?"— Desiring to 
Love. — TUNE, Canterbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 24. The third verse of the original is left out. 

Hymn 379. — " O love, 1 languish at thy stay ! 91 — Desiring to 
Love. — Tune, Psalm 112, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 25. 

Hymn 380.— "Prisoners of hope, lift up your heads."—" The 
Word of our God shall stand for ever? — TUNE, Frankfort, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 232. Four verses are omitted. 

Hymn 381. — "When, my Saviour, shall I be." — Submission. — 
Tune, Paris, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 152. The original is in five double verses, of which three 
are omitted. 

Hymn 382. — " O great Mountain, who art thou?" 

„ 383. — "Who hath slighted or contemn'd?" 
Zechariah iv. 7, &c. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 234. The second part, like the first, consists of five verses, 
of which two are omitted. 

Hymn 384. — "I know that my Redeemer lives."—" Rejoicing 
in Hope. 1 ' — Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 180. The original has twenty-three verses, of which four- 
teen are omitted. 

A plain simple-hearted, unlettered, but godly man, was John 



Hy. 384.] 



and its Associations. 



215 



Waiters, of Norton, near Malton, where he became a useful 
local preacher, and lived to be at the head of the plan in the 
Malton circuit. The poor uneducated people heard him gladly, 
from his plainness of speech. He long prayed for the conversion 
of his family, and lived to see his prayers answered. He suffered 
much and severely in his last illness, but comforted himself by 
quoting verses of hymns. One of his last efforts at quotation 
gave evidence of his assured faith in Christ. He repeated the 
first verse of Hymn 384 — 

" I know that my Redeemer lives, 
And ever prays for me ; 
A token of His love He gives, 
A pledge of liberty." 

On coming to the second verse, he dwelt with pleasure on the 
line — 

" He brings salvation near." 

Amongst his last utterances were the words, " Christ is precious 
— precious Christ — precious blood — precious promises." After 
a connexion of more than sixty years with the church militant, 
he joined the triumphant host in the city of God. 

Isaac Pape was brought to know God, in the city of Yoik, and 
made a prayer-leader and exhorter. In 1822 he removed to 
Ripon, where he became a local preacher, and, aided by his 
brother, commenced a Sunday-school at Borough-Bridge. He 
was long a most faithful and earnest class-leader. When illness 
set in, he saw no hope of recovery, and was fully resigned to the 
will of God. To a friend who visited him the day before his 
death he said, " Whatever you do, give your heart to God ; 
and do it without delay." To another friend he said, u I have 
built on a Rock, and that Rock is Christ." And to Mr Steven- 
son, one of the preachers, who asked if he found Jesus near, he 
replied — 

" I find Him lifting up my head, 
He brings salvation near : 
His presence makes me free indeed, 
And He will soon appear." 

After partaking of the sacrament of the Lord's Supper, he seemed 
lost to all earthly things, and talked of nothing but chariots and 
angels, shining garments, crowns, and music, shouting hallelujah, 
until his exulting spirit entered the paradise above. 



2l6 



TJte Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 385. 



Hymn 385.—" Love Divine, all loves excelling." — For those that 
seek Redemption. — Tune, Westminster, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from w Hymns for those that seek and those 
that have Redemption in the Blood of Jesus Christ" 1747. 

The second verse of the original is left out, arising probably 
from two lines which are thought to be defective in doctrinal 
accuracy. The omitted verse is as follows — 

" Breathe, O breathe Thy loving spirit 

Into every troubled breast ; 
Let us all in Thee inherit, 

Let us find that second rest : 
Take away the power of sinning, 

Alpha and Omega be, 
End of faith, as its beginning, 

Set our hearts at liberty." 

Upon the two doubtful lines in the centre of this stanza, 
that refined critic, Mr Fletcher of Madeley, has remarked : — 
" Mr Wesley says second rest, because an imperfect believer en- 
joys a first, inferior rest ; if he did not, he would be no believer." 
And of the line, " Take away the power of sinning," he asks, " Is 
not this expression too strong ? Would it not be better to soften 
it by saying, 6 Take away the love of sinning ' ? [or the bent of 
the mind towards sin]. Can God take away from us our po wer 
of sinning, without taking away our power of free obedience ? 99 

As early as the age of ten years, Elizabeth, the first wife of the 
Rev. Francis Athow West, began to meet in class, and to none 
of the many means of grace offered by Methodism was she more 
attached than to the class-meeting. Instructed and delighted 
by the preaching of the Rev. Robert Newton, her joy was greatly 
increased wdien she became an inmate of his house to take 
charge of his children. In 1826, she was married ; and in 1829, 
she had some strong presentiments of changes in the family by 
death. The death of two of her sisters, and of Mr West's 
mother, confirmed these impressions, and shortly afterwards she 
had further indications of a similar character, which really pre- 
ceded her own early death. She suffered much and severely, 
and was very prostrate. To her husband's inquiry, "Is Jesus 
precious?" she made no reply for some time. After she had 
gathered a little strength, she began singing — 



Hy. 386.] 



a?id its Associations. 



217 



" Jesus, Thou art all compassion ; 
Pure, unbounded love Thou art ; 
Visit us with Thy salvation ; 

Enter every trembling heart," &c. 

On the day before her death she had a fierce conflict with the 
tempter, but overcame by earnest and importunate prayer. 
She then exclaimed, " I do love thee, O God ; for I feel thy 
love ! n She continued spending all her time and strength in 
praising God and singing, till her released spirit fled from its 
clay tenement to the land of rest. 

The desolation of widowhood was the awakening cause which 
led Mrs Rowbotham to seek the Lord. From a desire " to flee 
from the wrath to come/' she joined the class led by Mrs Mor- 
ley, wife of the Rev. George Morley, at Macclesfield, and found 
pardon whilst praying in private. Soon afterwards she became 
the affectionate, faithful, and successful leader of the same 
class. The whole tenor of her life was changed after her con- 
version, and her delight was in the ordinances of religion, and 
in fellowship with the people of God. On the day of her death 
this promise was constantly in her mind, " Fear not, worm 
Jacob ; I will help thee, saith the Lord." A few hours before 
she exchanged mortality for life, she expressed herself as espe- 
cially sensible of the Divine presence, saying— 

u Angels are hovering round us ; " 

then adding — 

" Finish, then, Thy new creation, 

Pure and spotless let us be ; 
Let us see Thy great salvation, 

Perfectly restored in Thee : 
Changed from glory into glory, 

Till in heaven we take our place, 
Till we cast our crowns before Thee, 

Lost in wonder, love, and praise." 

Hymn 386.—" Arm of the Lord, awake, awake ! "—Isaiah li. 9. 
—Tune, St Luke's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1739, 
page 222. This forms the last hymn in the work which is 
known as the 1739 book. It is printed also in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. i., where it is in four parts, this hymn 
forming a portion only of the second part. This appeared at 



218 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 386. 



the end of the first, second, and third editions only of this 
work, but was withdrawn from the fourth and fifth editions, and 
inserted as a complete paraphrase of the chapter in the 1749 
book, as stated above. 

One of" God's worthies" was Mrs Sarah Benson, wife of the 
Rev. Joseph Benson. Very early in life she felt the strivings of 
the Spirit of God. When she was sixteen, she attended the 
Methodist chapel in Leeds, where she was convinced of sin, 
and was enabled to believe for pardon. From the time of her 
acceptance with God, to the end of her earthly pilgrimage, her 
uprightness and conscientiousness of conduct were manifest to 
all who knew her, and she was spoken of as "an Israelite in- 
deed, in whom there was no guile." She was much and heavily 
afflicted in body through weakness, but her faith and patience 
enabled her to bear all submissively. Her last confinement was 
a time of peculiar and protracted trial, and occurring at the 
time of the Conference in 1799, her husband was unable to leave 
her to attend the first session, and a time of special prayer 
was observed by the whole Conference for the deliverance of His 
servant. In answer to these fervent, heartfelt, believing prayers, 
the goodness of God was manifested, the youngest son in the 
family was born, and Mr Benson was enabled to go to Confer- 
ence before it was half over. That child was called Samuel, 
" heard of God," and was known for years as " Mr Benson's 
Conference Child." Dedicated from before his birth to the 
Lord, and by the earnest prayers of the whole Methodist Con- 
ference, he grew up a God-fearing, God-loving, and God-serving 
man, and has been for forty-five years one of the clergymen of 
St Saviour's Church, at the foot of London Bridge. In her 
last illness, Mrs Benson suffered much and long, but her joy 
and peace with God were unbroken. When she had taken 
to bed for the last time, she asked her daughter Ann to read 
three verses to her — 

i 1 By death and hell pursued in vain, 

To Thee the ransom'd seed shall come ; 
Shouting, their heavenly Sion gain, 

And pass through death triumphant home. 

" The pain of life shall there be o'er, 
The anguish and distracting care ; 
There sighing grief shall weep no more, 
And sin shall never enter there. 



Hy. 386.] 



and its Associations. 



219 



" Where pure essential joy is found, 

The Lord's redeem'd their heads shall raise, 
With everlasting gladness crown'd, 

And fill'd with love, and lost in praise." 

Upon this she said, " Oh, what a blessed hymn ! Let me 
hear it again." She then gave instructions to be buried behind 
City Road Chapel, and soon afterwards entered on her eternal 
rest. 

It is worthy of remark, that the last time the Rev. Joseph 
Benson was out to tea, the Rev. Jabez Bunting was present, who 
records how Mr Benson delighted all present by the solemn 
manner in which he recited the same three verses, and gave a 
heavenly tone to the whole conversation of the evening. 

A woman at Alnwick had a dream that she saw a young man 
sitting under the gallery of the Methodist chapel there, in a 
pensive mood. On the next evening, being at the chapel, and 
seeing a young man in the place she had seen in her dream, she 
sent her brother to ask him to accompany him to a class-meeting. 
He had previously been convinced of sin under a sermon by Mr 
R. C. Brackenbury in 1780, and soon afterwards he obtained 
pardon, and ultimately entered the Methodist ministry. Such 
was the commencement of the religious life of the Rev. Robert 
Johnson. When prostrated by illness, and expecting his death, 
he rejoiced in the fact that he had preached a full gospel, and 
especially the doctrine of Christian perfection. Then, calling 
for the Hymn-book, he repeated the hymn — 

" Arm of the Lord, awake, awake ! 

Thine own immortal strength put on ! " &c. ; 

adding emphasis to the third verse — 

"Thy arm, Lord, is not shorten'd now ; 

It wants not, Lord, the power to save," &c. 

A perpetual smile beamed from his countenance, and in tran- 
quillity he entered heaven. 

During half his life-time, James Scott, father of the Rev. 
William Scott, missionary, was a useful class-leader at Lincoln. 
A little before he died, he said, " All is bright ; ail is clear," and 
then repeated the verse — 

1 * By death and hell pursued in vain, 

To Thee the ransom'd seed shall come," &c. ; 
and after quoting the next verse, he peacefully fell asleep in Jesus. 



220 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 389. 



Hymn 387. — " Prisoners of hope, arise." — For those that wait 
for full Redemptio7i. — Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 133 in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The fourth verse of the original is left out. 

Hymn 388. — " O that my load of sin were gone ! n — " Come unto 
Me," &c. (Matt. xi. 28).— Tune, Purcell's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 91. It is also in John Wesley's " Select Hymns with Tunes 
Annext," bound with the Sacred Melody, 1761, the tune there 
given being " Evesham." 

Having been brought to God in early life during a revival in 
1837, the sympathies of Catherine Workman were naturally 
entwined round the young ; and both in the Sabbath-school, 
and in her own family, her love and regard for young people was 
manifested in an earnest desire for their salvation. As the wife of 
the Rev. J. S. Workman, her zeal for the glory of God, her piety 
and consistent example, her love of God's Word, of prayer, and 
of the means of grace, won for her a circle of attached friends. 
Nine days of intense suffering, whilst residing at Patricroft, 
Manchester, terminated her earthly course. On the night before 
her death, Mr Workman asked if she felt Christ precious, to 
which she replied, " Very, very ; full of Christ ! 99 She then 
repeated, with surprising animation — 

" Come, Lord, the drooping sinner cheer, 
Nor let Thy chariot- wheels delay ; 
Appear, in my poor heart appear ! 
My God, my Saviour, come away ! " 

She suffered much in her last hours, but rejoiced in a present 
Saviour ; and waving her feeble hand in triumph, with a smile 
on her lips, her released spirit entered the realms of the blest. 

H VMN 3 89. — "O Jesus, at Thy feet we wait." — For those that 
wait for full Redemption. — TUNE, Trinity, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 134. Three verses of the original are left out. 

It is an honourable record to the memory of James Bond, of 
Warminster, that from 1780, for fifty years, he acted as an earnest, 
faithful local preacher ; and during that time he preached four 



Hy. 393-] 



and its Associations. 



221 



thousand sermons, and to do so had to walk twenty thousand 
miles. He was a man of sincere piety, and the utmost sim- 
plicity in conversation, habits, and preaching. The opinion of 
all his neighbours, after he had lived fourscore and seven years 
amongst them, was, that " he was a good man." He was able to 
praise and rejoice in God through a long affliction ; and just 
before closing his earthly pilgrimage, he raised himself up in 
bed, and said, " Sing my favourite hymn — 

* O Jesus, at Thy feet we wait, 
Till Thou shalt bid us rise, 
Restored to our unsinning state, 
To love's sweet paradise/ " 

His last words were, "A full reward ; but all through grace." 

Hymn 390. — " Since the Son hath made me free." — " Ask, ana 
ye shall receive? — Tune, Dedication, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
pages 219, 220 ; founded on John xvi. 24. 

The whole of this fine hymn may be found at the end of 
Mr Wesley's fortieth sermon, the subject of which is Christian 
Perfection. It was a great favourite with both John Wesley and 
John Fletcher, who made good use of it in their controversies 
with the opponents of the doctrine of sanctification. Mr Fletcher, 
in his " Last Check to Antinomianism," says of his opponents' 
antagonism to the doctrine, " it doubtless chiefly springs from 
his inattention to our definition of it, which I once more sum up 
in those comprehensive lines of Mr Wesley." Then follow the 
lines of this hymn. 

Hymn 391. — " God of all power, and truth, and grace." 
„ 392. — " Father, supply my every need." 
„ 393. — " Holy, and true, and righteous Lord." 
Pleading for the Promise of Sanctification. — Tune, Zoar, 1761. 

From Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 261 ; founded on Ezek. xxxvi. 23, &c. 

No Christian poets but the Wesleys have so clearly stated 
and so fearlessly enforced the doctrine of spiritual perfection. 
Many have taken exception thereto. Mr Fletcher gives a 
reason for this, which it may be desirable to record here. In a 
letter which the Vicar of Madeley had then lately received from 
the Rev. C. Wesley, the latter observes ; — u I was once on the 



222 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 398. 



brink of Antinomianism, by unwarily reading Crisp and Salt- 
marsh. Just then, warm in my first love, I was in the utmost 
danger, when Providence threw in my way Baxter's treatise en- 
titled 'A Hundred Errors of Dr Crisp Demonstrated.' My 
brother was sooner apprehensive of the dangerous abuse which 
would be made of our unguarded (Calvinistic) hymns and ex- 
pressions than I was." From that time and circumstance the 
clearness, purity, and demonstrative power of scriptural holiness 
was frequently manifested in Charles Wesley's compositions. 

Hymn 394. — " O God of our forefathers, hear." — The Holy Eu- 
charist as it implies a Sacrifice. — Tune, Marienbourn, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, and appears in "Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper," 1745, page 106. 

Hymn 395. — " O God, to whom, in flesh reveal'd." — Jesus Christy 
the same yesterday, to-day, and for ever J 1 — Tune, Invitation, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 43 in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. ; founded on Hebrews xiii. 8. 

Of this hymn Mr Bunting observes, that it is "quite as appro- 
priate, and indeed more so, to a penitent sinner on his first 
coming to Christ for pardon and purity." 

Hymn 396. — " O Thou, whom once they flocked to hear." — 
" Jesus Christ, the same yesterday ', to-day ', and for ever." — 
Tune, Evesham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 46 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. Four verses of the original are left out. 

Hymn 397. — " Jesu, Thy far-extended fame." — " Jesus Christ, 
the sajne yesterday, to-day, and for ever." — Tune, Dresden, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 44 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The original has twelve verses, four of 
which are omitted. 

Hymn 398. — " Saviour of the sin-sick soul." — For those that 
wait for full Redemption. — Tune, Brays, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the latter half of No. 116 in 
u Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, voL iL The original is in 



Hy. 401.] 



and its Associations. 



223 



four eight-line stanzas, commencing " Jesus cast a pitying eye." 
The first and second verses are omitted. The second line of 
verse 2 in the hymn reads in the original, " Take away my 
power to sin, - which is the same as in Hymn 393. 

For more than sixty years John James, of Sancreed, St Just, 
was a consistent Methodist, and sustained the offices of class- 
leader and local preacher for more than fifty years, with accept- 
ance and faithfulness. His assurance of the Divine favour was 
clear, his attachment to the ministry strong, and his regular 
early attendance at the means of grace a consistent and worthy 
example to many. In his eighty-ninth year he died a tranquil 
and happy death. Some of his last words were, " I am on the 
Rock." 

" None but Christ to me be given ! 
None but Christ in earth or heaven." 

" Christ is my all in all." Thus peacefully he entered into rest. 

The repetitions used in verse 3, just quoted, and also in 
the fourth verse, are no less a beauty than a peculiarity in 
Charles Wesley's poetry ; and the antithesis in the first two 
lines of verse 3, and in the last two of verse 4, taken in con- 
nexion with the reiteration of words, renders these two stanzas 
among the most remarkable of any in the volume, both for sin- 
gularity of expression and sublimity of sentiment. 

Hymn 399. — " Light of life, seraphic fire." — For those that wait 
for full Redemption. — Tune, Westminster, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 120 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The third verse of the original is 
omitted. 

Hymn 400. — " Jesus comes with all His grace." — For those that 
wait for full Rede?nfttion. — Tune, Cookham, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 135. Three verses of the original are omitted. 

Hymn 401. — "All things are possible to him."— •" All things are 
possible to him that believethr — Tune, Norwich, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 112 in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii., founded on Mark ix. 23. Two verses are 
omitted. The hymn contains a clear statement of the doctrine 
of Christian perfection, a feature which John Wesley specially 
commends in this edition of his brother's works. 



224 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 404. 



HYMN 402. — "O might I this moment cease." — Waiting for 
the Promise. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 240. Three verses are left out. The first commences — 

" O the cruel power of sin." 

Hymn 403. — " Lord, I believe a rest remains." — " There re- 
maineth therefore a rest for the people of God? — Tune, 
Wednesbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
p. 204, founded on Heb. iv. 9. The original has twenty-seven 
stanzas, and forms the last in the book. In some of the omitted 
stanzas there are a few rather extravagant thoughts. 

Multitudes of Methodists have experienced delight in com- 
mitting to memory Wesley's hymns ; but few, probably, in a 
higher degree than Emma Ann, the wife of the Rev. John B. 
Charles. At the early age of twelve she joined the Methodist 
Society, and when only twenty-two, she was called to exchange 
mortality for life. Her chief delight was to speak of Jesus ; and 
she would often, during her last illness, ask her friends to sing 
to her of Him. On one occasion, when those near were look- 
ing on her in silence, she tried to sing — 

" Lord, I believe a rest remains, To all Thy people known, 

A rest where pure enjoyment reigns, And Thou art loved alone." 

Her last advice was, " Live to purpose,'' and " Meet me in 
heaven." 

Hymn 404. — " O glorious hope of perfect love ! " — Desiring to 
Love. — Tune, Musicians, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 245. The original has eight stanzas, the first three of which 
are left out. The first commences — 

" Come, Lord, and help me to rejoice." 

It contains an admirable contrast between the earthly and the 
heavenly Canaan. 

During a revival of religion at Runcorn, Sarah Rhodes, of 
Rotherham, was convinced of sin, whilst a girl at school. She 
joined the Methodists, and some time afterwards was appointed 



Hy. 404.] 



and its Associations, 



225 



to the charge of a class of young persons, by the Rev. Jabez 
Bunting. She had been but a short time married when con- 
sumption set in, and carried her to an early grave. She left 
behind her a glorious testimony of her acceptance with God. 
Having partaken of the Lord's Supper, given by the Rev. R. 
Heyes, she was perfectly resigned and happy. She asked Mrs 
Law to read her some hymns. When she had finished one, she 
said, " Now then another, and let it be — 

f O glorious hope of perfect love ! 
It lifts me up to things above,' " &c. 

After hearing this, she repeated the last verse with deep emo- 
tion — 

" Now, O my Joshua, bring me in ! 
Cast out Thy foes ; the inbred sin, 

The carnal mind, remove ; 
The purchase of Thy death divide ! 
And O ! with all the sanctified 

Give me a lot of love ! " 

Her prayer was soon answered ; for she died exclaiming, " Vic- 
tory in death : the love of God in the heart." 

Methodism was early planted in Cornwall, and has been the 
greatest blessing God ever sent there. When Dr Adam Clarke 
was a stripling, he was stationed in that county in 1785. The 
pulpit Bible and Hymn-book in the chapel at Launceston were 
so torn and worn, that Robert Pearse, a Presbyterian, who heard 
the young preacher, sent to him next morning a handsome Bible 
and Hymn-book for the use of the congregation. William 
Pearse, the second son of this good man, became a Methodist, 
and contributed greatly to the establishment of Methodism in 
the town, and to its extension all around. He also contributed 
time, influence, and substance to the cause of foreign missions, 
as carried on by Dr Coke. Going together one day to call on 
a reverend doctor in divinity, a man of wealth, and a magistrate, 
to plead for the cause of missions, they were coldly refused any 
help or countenance by the so-called divine : and, on leaving the 
room, the gown of Dr Coke was caught in the door. When 
liberated, the warm-hearted little doctor said, " Brother Pearse, 
I would not have that man's soul in my body for all the world." 
After a consistent, upright, useful, godly life of seventy-five 
years, a short illness closed his earthly career. But as he had 
been accustomed throughout life to express his sorrows and 

p 



226 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 405. 



joys in the language of Wesley's hymns ; so just before his suf- 
ferings on earth were closed, he said, in reply to the inquiry of 
one of his family — 

V Rejoicing now in earnest hope, 
I stand, and from the mountain top 
See all the land below : 

There dwells the Lord our Righteousness, 
And keeps His own in perfect peace, ■ 
And everlasting rest." 

After this he gradually sank, until his happy spirit fled to God. 

HYMN 405.—" O joyful sound of gospel grace! " The Spirit 
and the Bride say come" — Tune, Bexley, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the last piece in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1742. The original has twenty-two stanzas, the 
first nine and four others being omitted. This is one of the 
few hymns to which the poet has added, in the omitted portion, 
a note of explanation of the terms he has made use of in one 
verse. 

Few can boast the privilege which was well earned by Mrs 
Hay, of Louth, of having entertained the travelling and local 
preachers at her house for more than half a century. For 
seventy-two years she adorned her religious profession as a mem- 
ber of the Methodist Society, and for ninety-two years the pro- 
vidence of God prolonged her life. When prostrated by illness 
she rejoiced in Christ as her Saviour, and had pleasure in quot- 
ing the hymn commencing — 

" The glorious crown of righteousness 
To me reach'd out I view." 

To which she added, " Yes ; I shall wear it as my own through 
Jesus." Just before her departure, she added, "Angels are come ; 
surely they are come to fetch me home ; " and so she entered into 
rest. 

Martha Meek, the mother of Mr Alderman Meek, of York, 
was brought to know God when very young, and through a long 
life she was a sincere follower of the Lord Jesus Christ. When 
old age and infirmities set in, she was still able to rejoice in God, 
and frequently before her departure she delighted to repeat the 
verse — 



Hy. 408.] and its Associations. 227 



" The promised land, from Pisgah's top, 
I now exult to see ; 
My hope is full (O glorious hope !) 
Of immortality." 

She left behind her a clear and pleasing testimony that she was 
going to be for ever with the Lord. 

Hymn 406. — " What is our calling's glorious hope." — " Who 
gave Himself for us" &c. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 246, founded on Titus ii. 14. The original commences, 
" Jesus, Redeemer of mankind," and has fourteen stanzas, the 
first nine being omitted. 

Hymn 407. — " None is like Jeshurun's God." — Deuteronomy 
xxxiii. 26-29. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 248. The original has nine stanzas, the two last being 
omitted. It is remarkable for its admirable adaptation of Scrip- 
ture history, combined with evangelical sentiment. 

It was the privilege of Mrs Witty to hear Mr Wesley preach 
in George Yard Chapel, Hull, and also to hear Mr Benson preach 
the opening sermon of that renowned house of prayer. There 
she received her first ticket from the Rev. Thomas Taylor, in 
1 791, and during a long life spared no pains or cost in extend- 
ing the kingdom of Christ in the world. During a protracted 
affliction her mind was kept in peace, and a few minutes before 
she expired she faintly uttered — 

" Round me and beneath are spread 
The everlasting arms ; " 

and directly afterwards entered into her heavenly rest. 

Hymn 408. — "He wills that I should holy be" — "Holiness to 
the Lord!'— Tune, Athlone, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, being made up of four of his "Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns." Verses 1 and 2 form No. 631, vol. ii. ; verses 3 and 
4 No. 325, vol. i. ; verses 5 and 6 No. 838, vol. L ; and verses 7 
and 8 No. 171, vol. ii. 

From having been a gay, thoughtless, impetuous, worldly 
young man, John Anderson, through the grace of God, became 
one of the most honoured and successful preachers of right- 



228 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 408. 



eousness which Methodism has known. Born in the garrison of 
Gibraltar, where his father was a soldier, he grew up with a proud 
and unyielding spirit, till the death of his mother awakened him 
to a state of conscious sinfulness, and at a love-feast held in 
London when he was seventeen, his convictions were deepened, 
and at another love-feast, held on Whit-Tuesday 1808, at Poplar, 
he entered into the liberty of the children of God. One day, 
whilst reading the experience of one of the early Methodist 
preachers, he became convinced of a call to enter the ministry ; 
and, advised to that effect by the Rev. Richard Reece, he soon 
entered upon that course of useful and efficient service with which 
his name is blessedly associated even to this day. In 1820, a 
remarkable visitation from heaven resulted in his entire conse- 
cration of all his powers of mind and body to the service of 
God, and in the entire sanctification of his nature, and this per- 
sonal holiness stood alternately in the relation of cause and 
effect to fidelity in the duties of his calling. Ever afterwards his 
soul was full of glory. The struggle by which he entered on 
this blessed experience is so full of instruction, that it may be 
briefly stated here. The reading of "Rutherford's Letters" had 
created a panting in his soul after God, and in that spirit he had 
prepared two sermons and preached them. " On Monday," ob- 
serves Mr Anderson, " I was musing on the past day's labours, 
and praying for a blessing. The subject of Christ's manifesta- 
tion occurred to me. I fostered the delightful topic I longed 
for Jesus to come and dwell in me. My heart was soft and ten- 
der ; my soul clear and peaceful. I broke out in praise of God. 
In this frame I took up our Hymn-book, and read and sang 
the hymn beginning — 

" He wills that I should holy be ; 
That holiness I long to feel," &c. 

Proceeding to examine other hymns in the same strain, I then 
fell upon my knees, and prayed for the free gift of God in Jesus 
Christ. I soon found the powerful visitation of the Spirit. I saw 
the glorious fulness of Jesus Christ. I felt it was only by faith. 
Satan tempted, when I was on the eve of believing, that I should 
not confess the blessing. I saw the impious design, and in that 
moment my whole soul opened by faith, and the plenitude of God 
entered in and took possession of my heart. My full soul uttered, 
'I can, I will, I do believe!' and it immediately sank into a 
calm and heavenly state." Oh ! for such a baptism on all the 



Hy. 414] 



and its Associations. 



229 



ministers of the Church of Christ ! The glorious manifestations 
of Divine power to save sinners which attended his ministry ever 
afterwards should induce others of the Lord's servants to seek 
the same blessed experience. 

Hymn 409. — "Jesus, my Lord, I cry to Thee." — Seeking for 
full Redemption. — Tune, Leeds, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, formed of Nos. 299, 341, and 1004 of "Short 
Scripture Hymns." 

Hymn 410. — " Father, I dare believe." — Seeking for full Redemp- 
tion. — Tune, Brentford, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, formed of Nos. 881, 1178, and 1 179. In 
the second verse Mr Bunting proposed to alter " Take, empty 
it," to " Empty my heart ; " and in the next line read "My soul, 
with purity." Hymns 395, 396, and 397 treat on the same subject 

Hymn 411. — " Why not now, my God, my God ?" — Seeking for 
full Redemption. — Tune, Dedication, 1781. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 850 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
based on Psalm ci. 2. The second verse is altered from " At the 
close of life's short day." 

Hymn 412.—" Thou God that answerest by fire." — Seeking for 
full Redemption. — Tune, Smith's, 1781. 
Charles Wesley's, formed from Nos. 845 and 846 of " Scrip- 
ture Hymns," vol. i., founded on 1 Kings xviii. 38, 39. The first 
eight lines of the original are left out, which refer to the unavail- 
ing character of the prayers of the priests of Baal. 

Hymn 413. — " Once thou didst on earth appear." — Seeking for 
full Redemption. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, made up of No. 790, and part of No. 649, 
of " Short Scripture Hymns," vol. i., the fourth verse being the 
first of Hymn 28 in the " Family Hymns." 

Hymn 414. — " Now, even now, I yield, I yield." — Seeking for 
full Redemption. — Tune, Hamilton's, 1781. 
Charles Wesley's, formed of No. J 197, Jer. xiii. 27, and No. 
1209, Jer. xxiii. 29, of " Short Scripture Hymns," vol. ii. The 
second verse in the original reads thus : — 

" Jesus, Lord, our hearts inspire 
With that true word of Thine." 



230 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 416. 



Hymn 415. — " Jesus hath died that I might ive." — " Believe in 
the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved" — TUNE, 
Liverpool, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems,'* 1742, 
page 95, commencing with the ninth stanza of the original, eight 
being omitted ; and founded on Acts xvi. 31. There are no two 
lines more widely known amongst Methodists than the closing 
lines of this hymn, which are : — 

" Thy presence makes my paradise, 
And where Thou art is heaven." 

The poet Cowper has written a stanza which contains a some- 
what similar sentiment : — 

V But O, Thou bounteous Giver of all good I 
Thou art of all Thy gifts Thyself the crown ; 
Give what Thou canst — without Thee we are poor, 
And with Thee, rich — take what Thou wilt away." 

The truth of the declaration of the Psalmist, " When thy 
father and mother forsake thee, the Lord taketh thee up," was 
verified in the experience of Sarah Pearson, who, losing both her 
parents before she was sixteen, found a pious home in a Me- 
thodist family, was early married " in the Lord," and early called 
to her reward. After she had taken the final leave of her rela- 
tives, she said, " Oh how happy I am ! 

" 1 My soul breaks out in strong desire 
The perfect bliss to prove ; 
My longing heart is all on fire 
To be dissolv'd in love.' " 

Whilst breathing out " faith and patience," she escaped to the 
mansions of light. 

Hymn 416. — " I ask the gift of righteousness." — " Whatsoever 
things ye desire , when ye pray, believe? &c. — Tune, 
Brockmer, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 313 in " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. ii., founded on St Mark xi. 24, with the first eight 
lines of the original left out. Mr Bunting says, that " This, 
with some other hymns and verses in this section, belongs pro- 
perly to 6 Mourners Convinced of Sin.'" The line in verse 3, 
" Thy fulness I require," Mr Bunting alters to " Thy whole sal- 



Hy. 421.] and its Associations. 



231 



vation I require ; 99 and the last line he alters to " Shall ne'er 
commit it more." 

Hymn 417. — " Come, O my God, the promise seal." — " What 
things ye desire^ when ye pray, believe" &c. — Tune, 
Chimes, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 314 of " Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii., founded on St Mark xi. 24 ; with two verses considerably 
altered. Mr Bunting observes, " This hymn might be taken as 
an expression of the first triumph of a new-born believer." 

Hymn 418.—" God ! who didst so dearly buy."— Believers 
Saved. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, formed by uniting three of the "Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," numbered 554, 823, and 822 ; founded on 1 Cor. 
vi. 20 ; Rev. i. 5 ; Rev. i. 4, 5, — the transposed order being fre- 
quently resorted to by Mr John Wesley in arranging his brother's 
verses. This commences the eighth section of the collection, 
with the title " For Believers Saved " 

HYMN 419.—" Quicken'd with our immortal Head."—" God hath 
not given us the spirit of fear" &c. — Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 655 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii., founded on the words, " God hath not given us the spirit 
of fear, but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind " [Gr. 
sobriety] 2 Tim. i. 7. 

Hymn 420. — " Ye faithful souls, who Jesus know." — Resurrection. 
—Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, formed of Nos/625 and 626 of " Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," vol. ii., founded on Col. iii. 1-4. 

HYMN 421.—" I the good fight have fought."—" Fight the good 
fight 0/ faith"— TVNE t Brentford, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, formed of Nos. 665 and 667 of "Short 
Scripture Hymns," founded on 2 Tim. iv. 7. 

At the age of fifteen, Mrs Joseph Smith, of Market- Weighton, 
found peace in God through faith in Jesus Christ. For many 
years she retired several times daily to hold communion with 
God by prayer. She suffered from six attacks of paralysis. 



232 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 422. 



After the last seizure she was very happy, and just before she 
expired, she repeated and sung — 

" 1 the good fight have fought, 

when shall I declare ? 
The victory by my Saviour got, 

1 long with Paul to share," &c. 

The enthusiasm which was shown in worldly pursuits by 
Margaret Vasey, of Whitby, was turned in its full tide into the 
cause of God and religion when she became converted ; and as 
the affectionate faithful leader of a class for many years, she 
was made a blessing to many. When told that recovery, in her 
last illness, was hopeless, in calm resignation she accepted the 
position, and continued some time in prayer, afterwards adding, 
" May I bring glory to God in my last hour. 

" 4 O may I triumph so, 

When all my warfare's past ; 
And, dying, find my latest foe 
Under my feet at last !'" 

Her dying breath was a prayer for her youngest son, " Lord, 
save him ! Lord, save him !" 

In her seventeenth year, Agnes Hall, wife of the Rev. Thomas 
Hall, was brought to a saving knowledge of the truth through 
the instrumentality of Methodism, and from that time her resolu- 
tion was taken : " This people shall be my people, and their 
God my God." As the wife of a minister, she sought in every 
way to extend the Redeemer's kingdom. After a brief illness, 
in calm resignation she lay waiting for her change, and repeated 
the lines — 

" O may I triumph so, 

When all my warfare's past ; 
And, dying, find my latest foe 
Under my feet at last ! " 

Her children rise up and call her blessed. 

Hymn 422. — " Let not the wise his wisdom boast." — " Let not 
the wise man glory in his wisdom? &c. — Tune, Angels' 
' Song, 1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 1090 of " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. ii., founded on Jer. ix. 23. 



Hy. 426.] and its Associations. 



233 



Hymn 423. — "Who can worthily commend?" — "Unto Him 
thai loved us? &c— Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 824 of " Short Scripture 
Hymns, 7 ' vol. ii., founded on Rev. i. 5, 6. There is a noble 
boldness in the opening verses which is continued throughout. 
The poet vividly and sweetly points out what the love of Christ 
has done for man. 

Hymn 424. — " Us, who climb Thy holy hill." — " Showers of 
blessing? &c. — TUNE, Kingswood, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 1263 and part of No. 1264 of 
" Short Scripture Hymns," vol. ii., founded on Ezek. xxxiv. 26, 27. 

HYMN 425. — " The voice that speaks Jehovah near." — " What 
doest thou here, Elijah?'* &c— Tune, Palmis, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 550 of "Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol i., founded on 1 Kings xix. 13. 

Hymn 426. — " Lord, in the strength of grace." — Self-Consecration. 
— Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 621 of" Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i., founded on 1 Chron. xxix. 5. 

From childhood Charles Hulmewas an indefatigable reader. 
At the age of twelve years his father died, and the family was 
brought under the influence of Methodism, by which means he 
became seriously impressed. When eighteen years old, by prayer 
and faith he was enabled to believe on Christ for pardon, and 
from that time used his utmost efforts to bring others to a 
knowledge of the truth. After passing the offices of prayer- 
leader, exhorter, and local preacher, he was proposed by the 
Rev. Joseph Entwisle for the Wesleyan ministry, and accepted, 
and for twelve years laboured with very gratifying success in 
several circuits. He had a third year's appointment at Dudley 
in 1823, where a violent inflammation of the liver prostrated 
his strength and closed his life and ministry. In his last hours 
he exalted Christ, and urged his friends to rely on the Saviour. 
He also sang with energy — 

" Lord, in the strength of grace, 
With a glad heart and free." 

Here his strength for singing failed, and he repeated— 



234 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 429. 



"Myself, my residue of days, 
I consecrate to Thee.'' 

With his last breath he was extolling the merits of the atonement 
made by Christ. 

Hymn 427. — " God of all-redeeming grace." — Concerning the 
Sacrifice of our Persons" — Tune, Foundery, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns on the Lord's Supper," 
1745, No. 139. The second verse in the original reads thus : — 

"Just it is, and good, and right." 

Hymn 428.—" Let Him to whom we now belong." — Concerning 
the Sacrifice of our Persons. — Tune, Spitalfields, 1761. 

This forms No. 157 of Charles Wesley's "Hymns for the 
Lord's Supper," 1745. 

The self-consecration expressed in this and the previous 
hymn is, as Dr Brevint remarks, inclusive of all which we are, 
and which we can give to God, even to the least vessel in our 
houses ; all are made holy in this one consecration, according 
to the words of Zech. xiv. 20, 21. The poet sums up the whole 
in the couplet — 

" The Christian lives to Christ alone, 
To Christ alone he dies ! " 

In early life Sally Thomas, of Haworth, Keighley, was con- 
verted to God, and continued to witness a good confession till 
called home. She delighted much in the means of grace. To 
the Methodist ministers, who were for many years entertained 
in her family, she evinced the most sincere attachment. In her 
last affliction her mind was kept in peace ; death had lost its 
sting, and she often exclaimed — 

u The Christian lives to Christ alone, 
To Christ alone he dies ! " 

In this spirit of happy resignation she entered into rest. 

Hymn 429.— "Behold the servant of the Lord."— An Act of 
Devotion. — TUNE, Whit Sunday, 1781. 

Taken from Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. i., No. 120. 

This hymn was first published by John Wesley at the end of 
the first part of his " Further Appeal to Men of Reason and 



Hy. 430.] and its Associations. 



235 



Religion," which is dated December 22, 1744. That the hymn 
was written by Charles Wesley is certified by the fact that it is 
printed in the first volume of hymns published by him in 1749, 
with which work John Wesley's name is not associated. 

The thoroughly scriptural character of Wesley's hymns has 
been so often demonstrated, that the Bible may be said to be 
embodied in the Hymn-book. Some of the more careful 
students of both those books have given proofs of the hymns 
abounding in scriptural language ; indeed, during the preceding 
century, in which the hymns were written, some of them had 
scriptural proofs published with them. To show only one 
example of this interesting fact, this hymn was lately given by 
a Wesleyan minister to the young ladies of a Bible-class, to 
trace out the scriptural allusions therein, line by line. The 
result was as follows :— 



Lines. 


Scrip, passages. 


Lines. 


Scrip, passages. 


I. 


Luke i. 38. 


13. 


2 Chronicles vi. 7-9. 


2. 


Psalm xxii. 8. 


14. 


Proverbs xvi. 9. 


3. 


Luke xii. 28. 


IS- 


I Corinthians xvi. IO. 


4- 


Romans xii. 2. 


16. 


John xvii. 4. 


5- 


Hebrews iv. 10. 


17. 


John viii. 29. 


6. 


Matthew iii. 15. 


18. 


Mark vii. 37. 


7. 


Ephesians iii. 7. 


19. 


1 Cor. vi. 19, 20. 


8. 


1 Corinthians xv. 9. 


20. 


Isaiah lxiv. 8. 


9. 


Isaiah vi. 8. 


21. 


Psalm xvii. 15. 


10. 


Hosea xiv. 8. 


22. 


Psalm cxix. 6. 


11. 


John iii. 21. 


S3- 


Matthew vi. 22. 


12. 


Hebrews xiii. 20, 21. 


24. 


Philippians i. 21. 



HYMN 430. — Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." — Concerning the 
Sacrifice of our Persons. — Tune, Dedication, 1 781. 

Forms No. 155 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper," 1745. 

" Directed by his own choice to the medical profession, Daniel 
M'Allum was subsequently called by the great Head of the 
Church to minister in holy things. In obedience to this call, 
he exercised his ministry among the Wesleyans until (by a 
mysterious dispensation of Providence) he was removed, in the 
midst of his years and of his usefulness, from his labours on 
earth to his reward in heaven." When, in 1819, he asked the 
consent of the Conference to be relieved from the law which 
prohibits the marriage of probationers, he was successful, and 



236 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 433. 



he makes the following entry in his journal on the occasion : — 
" As it respects temporal things, my desire is to live honestly in 
the sight of all men ; and my prayer is that which Agur offered 
up. As it regards heavenly things, my wish is expressed in the 
following lines : — 

" * If so poor a worm as I 

May to Thy great glory live, 
All my actions sanctify, 

All my words and thoughts receive.' " 

His last testimony was, " My labours are done, but I build only 
on the merits of my Saviour. I feel that Jesus died for me." 

Hymn 431. — " O God, what offering shall I give ?" — A Morn- 
ing Dedication of ourselves to Christ. — Tune, Bradford, 1761. 

John Wesley's translation of a German hymn, written by 
Ernst Lange, 1 650-1 727, and appears in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems,'' 1739, page 179. The first* verse commences thus in 
the original — " Jesu, Thy light again I view," but it is omitted. 
It forms a very earnest and plain poetical condemnation of 
" the putting on of gold and costly apparel," which is prohibited 
also by the original rules of the " United Societies." 

HYMN 432. — " Father, into Thy hands alone." — Concerning the 
Sacrifice of our Persons. — Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

Forms No. 145 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper," 1745. The substance of this hymn is embodied in 
some remarks by Dr Brevint, which generally precede Charles 
Wesley's " Sacramental Hymns." 

Hymn 433. — "Give me the faith which can remove." — For a 
Lay Preacher.— Tune, Welsh, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 188 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i., the first, second, and eighth verses being 
omitted. The individuality of this hymn, as expressed in the 
title, is confined chiefly to the three omitted verses. In the 
second verse the poet breathes a " strong desire" for "a calmly- 
fervent zeal" — 

" To save poor souls out of the fire, 

To snatch them from the verge of hell, 
And turn them to a pardoning God, 
And quench the brands in Jesu's blood." 



Hy. 434.] 



and its Associations. 



237 



Pollok, in his " Course of Time," has a passage which has a 
strong resemblance to these lines (Book II., line 157) : — 
" The Holy One for sinners dies, 
The Lord of Life for guilty rebels bleeds, 
Quenches eternal fire with blood divine. 

Hymn 434. — " Jesus, all-atoning Lamb." — For Believers. — 
Tune, Savannah, 1761. 

Forms No. 126 of Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The first line of the original is as follows 
— " Gentle Jesus, lovely Lamb." This hymn is an extension of 
the sentiment of the apostle, " He that dwelleth in love dwelleth 
in God, and God in him." 

At the early age of eleven years Georgiana Gladwin was 
awakened to a sense of her sinful condition whilst attending 
the Wesleyan Chapel, Romney Terrace, Westminster, and was, 
two years afterwards, converted to God, and became a useful 
member and class-leader, and an infant-school teacher, years 
before a Normal school was thought of for Methodism. She 
was seized with illness in the house of God, and in a few weeks 
finished her earthly career. Shortly before she died, she laid 
her hand on her bosom and said, " The Prince of Peace is here. 
Oh, yes, I feel Him here ! " Afterwards, lifting her hands towards 
heaven, she exclaimed — 

" Jesus, all-atoning Lamb, 

Thine, and only Thine, I am ; 

Take my body, spirit, soul ; 

Only Thou possess the whole. " 
Then adding, " Yes, I am thine. Oh, what peace I feel ! Well 
may it be called the peace of God, for it passes understanding." 

The sudden death of an uncle was the cause of the conver- 
sion of John Horrill, of Higham Ferrars. From the time of 
his joining the Methodist Society he delighted in the means of 
grace, and for several years was a respected and useful class- 
leader and local preacher. In his last affliction the enemy was 
never suffered to interrupt his peace : he was always happy, 
and resigned to the will of God. The day on which he died he 
seemed to be unusually happy, and repeated — 
"Jesus, all-atoning Lamb, 

Thine, and only Thine, I am ; 

Take my body, spirit, soul ; 

Only Thou possess the. wliole." 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 436. 



He added, " He has been with me for twenty-two years, and oh ! 
what pleasure I have had in meeting my class ! But now I am 
more happy than ever," and so he entered into rest. 

The labours of Mr Wedlock, as a missionary in Jamaica, 
were made a blessing to many, and amongst them to Rebecca 
Ballah, of Montego Bay. She became an earnest and sincere 
Christian. In early life she was called to heaven, but before 
she departed she left a blessed testimony of her acceptance 
with God. To her leader who visited her she said, " Sing me 
my favourite hymn — 

" 'Jesus, all-atoning Lamb, 
Thine, and only Thine, I am ; 
Take my body, spirit, soul ; 
Only Thou possess the whole.* n 

She sat up and sung the whole with those present, dwelling with 
great emphasis on the line — 

"Thine, and only Thine, I am." 
" Thank God," she said, " I fear no evil days." 

Hymn 435.— " Father, to Thee my soul I lift/— is God 
that worketh in you to will and to do" &c. — Tune, Mit- 
cham, 1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 168 of "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. Note one very characteristic line of the 
poet's, " His blood demands the purchased grace !" 

Hymn 436. — "Jesu, my Truth, my Way." — For Believers. — 
Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 127 in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. The original is in seven double stanzas, 
the third and fourth being left out. 

The affluent circumstances of the parents of John Ripley, of 
Leeds, did not prevent them placing their son in a position to 
earn his own living by his own industry. When he grew to 
approaching manhood, he hesitated for some time to join the 
Lord's people in fellowship ; but under a sermon preached by 
the Rev. A. E. Farrar, he saw that religion was necessary to 
qualify a man for business in the world, for worshipping in the 
Church, and for walking before God with a perfect heart He 
at once joined his father's class. A short time afterwards, after 



Hy. 437-1 



and its Associations. 



239 



a sermon preached by the Rev. George Marsden, he was given 
to realise a sense of pardon and adoption into the family of 
God. He was an instructive Sunday-school teacher, and a 
useful and acceptable local preacher. He was not strong, 
physically, and one Sunday in 1828, when returning from one of 
his preaching appointments, he was drenched through with rain, 
and incautiously went into a chapel and sat to hear one of his 
brethren preach. He returned home ill, and from that night 
did not recover his health. During his illness he spoke as one 
on the confines of heaven. He earnestly sought till he found 
the blessing of perfect love, and then, with peculiar emphasis 
he gave out the hymn, which had long been a favourite with 
him — 

" Let me Thy witness live, 
When sin is all destroyed : 
And then my spotless soul receive, 
And take me home to God " 

When he had realised the full blessing of sanctification, the 
weakness of the man was swallowed up in the strength of the 
Christian : and he reproached himself that he had so long re- 
mained without the blessing. He died in great peace, whisper- 
ing " Glory ! glory l n 

Hymn 437.—" O God, my God, my All Thou art V— Psalm 
lxiii. — Tune, Italian, 1761. 

This hymn is from the Spanish, translated by John Wesley 
when he was in America in 1735, and first published in his 
" Collection of Psalms and Hymns," 1738 ; it is also in " Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a S e The fourth verse of the 

original is left out. 

A writer in the Christian Miscellany for 1846 observes, re- 
specting this hymn, "This is one which stands pre-eminent, and 
which is almost unrivalled for its elevated devotional feeling, its 
rich evangelical sentiment, its simple elegance of language, and 
the accurate and beautiful manner in which, without any 
apparent effort, the poet has interwoven the thoughts and ex- 
pressions of the Psalmist in his own sacred ode." It is a version 
of Psalm lxiii. The author has not yet been ascertained, and it 
is the only one of John Wesley's translations which has not been 
traced to its source. 

The mind of Elizabeth Stockdale was disposed towards religion 



240 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 440. 



from early life. In reading religious books, and especially Chris- 
tian biography, she took delight. She did not receive the bless- 
ing of acceptance with God until a short time before her death* 
She was alone with her husband, and they were speaking of 
the beauties of the hymn beginning, " Thou great mysterious 
God unknown," &c, when she was much affected. She asked 
to have the Hymn-book, that she might find her favourite hymn. 
With much feeling, she read the first verse — 

" O God, my God, my All Thou art i 
Ere shines the dawn of rising day, 
Thy sovereign light within my heart, 
Thy all-enlivening power, display. " 
She continued to read till she came to the sixth verse, when she 
increased the emphasis — 

" Abundant sweetness, while I sing 

Thy love, my ravished heart o'erflows ; 
Secure in Thee, my God and King, 
Of glory that no period knows." 
And then, with no ordinary feeling, she repeated — 

f 6 O God, my God, my All Thou art" 
She was enabled to exercise faith in the promises of God, and 
to believe on Him for her acceptance through Christ. Strangely 
mysterious are the ways of God sometimes to the eyes of human 
observers. A few hours after this blessed change was realised, 
it was evident that death was at hand, and just before the 
change came, her only child was suddenly seized with croup, 
and was suffocated before relief could be applied, and a youthful 
mother and her only infant entered heaven together ! 

Hymn 438. — " O God of peace and pardoning love." — "Now the 
God of peace" &c— Tune, York, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 734 of" Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii. ? founded on Heb. xiii. 20, 21. This hymn and the two 
following ones are of a measure so peculiar that they are very 
seldom used in the service of song. 

Hymn 439. — " Thy power and saving truth to show." 
„ 440. — " Thou, Jesu, Thou my breast inspire. " 
For a Person called forth to bear his Testimony. — TUNE, 
York, 1761. 

From Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 



Hy. 444.] and its Associations, 241 



vol. i., No. 209. The original has nine verses of twelve lines 
each, four of which are left out. The first line of the fifth verse 
reads thus : — " Thy power and saving grace to show." " Grace" 
is altered to " truth " by John Wesley. Mr Jackson, in his Life of 
the poet, and speaking of the noble and energetic lines which 
form these two hymns, says : — "Mr Charles Wesley has strikingly 
depicted the mighty faith, the burning love to Christ, the yearning 
pity for the souls of men, the heavenly-mindedness, the animating 
hope of future glory, which characterised his public ministry, 
and which not only enabled him to deliver his Lord's message 
before scoffing multitudes, but also carried him through his 
wasting labours, and the riots of Bristol, Cornwall, Staffordshire, 
Devizes, and of Ireland, without a murmur." 

Hymn 441.— "Let God, who comforts the distrest.' — " For all 
Mankind"— Tune, Canterbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the first of " Hymns of Intercession 
for all Mankind," 1758. This is the first hymn in Section IX., 
with the title, " For Believers Interceding." 

Hymn 442. — " Our earth we now lament to see." — For Peace. — 
TUNE, Canterbury, 1761. 

The second of Charles Wesley's " Hymns of Intercession." 

Hymn 443. — "Sun of unclouded Righteousness." — For the 
Turks — Mohammedans. — Tune, Marienburn, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 33 of his " Hymns of Intercession." 

Hymn 444.—" Lord over all, if Thou hast made."— For the 
Heathen. — Tune, Welsh, 1761. 

Appears as No. 34 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns of Interces- 
sion." 

The third stanza is quoted by John Wesley at the end of his 
" Thoughts upon Slavery." The Unitarian and Mohammedan 
both denying the divinity of our Lord Jesus Christ, are classed 
together in this hymn ; and though the language of the poet is 
particularly strong against Unitarianism, yet it is not more so 
than the dangerous character of that heresy deserves. 

Q 



242 



The Methodist Hymn- Book [H Y. 45 1. 



HYNN 445.—" O come, Thou radiant Morning-Star." — Balaam's 
Prophecy.— -Tune, Bradford, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, made up of portions of Nos. 257, 258, and 
259 of "Short Scripture Hymns," vol. i., founded on Nos. xxiv., 
17, 18, with two verses omitted. 

Hymn 446. — " Jesu, the word of mercy give." — "Let thy priests 
be clothed with salvation? &c. — Tune, Cornish, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, made up of portions of two " Short Scrip- 
ture Hymns," Nos. 638 and 397, founded on 2 Chron. vi. 41, 
and Judges v. 31. 

Hymn 447.—" Messiah, Prince of Peace !"— " Neither shall they 
lea)'n war any more? &c. — Tune, Olney, 1761. 

Forms No. 960 of Charles Wesley's "Scripture Hymns," vol. i., 
based on the words, " Neither shall they learn war any more " 
(Isa. ii. 4). 

Hymn 448. — " Prince of universal peace." — " The wolf shall 
dwell with the lamb? &c. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Forms No. 989 of Charles Wesley's u Scripture Hymns," vol. i., 
based on Isa. xi. 6, 7. 

Hymn 449. — " Happy day of union sweet ! " — " Ephraim shall 
not envy Judah? &c. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Forms No. 995 of Charles Wesley's " Scripture Hymns," vol. L, 
based on Isa. xi. 13. 

Hymn 450. — " Messiah, full of grace." — " The Israelites as dried 
bo7iesP — Tune, Brentford, 1761. 

Forms No. 1277 of Charles Wesley's "Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii., based on Ezek. xxxvii. 11, 12. 

Hymn 451. — "Father of faithful Abraham, hear." — For the 
Jews—Txm^ Mourners, 1761. 
This is No. 32 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns of Intercession,' 
1758, a rare tract, and seldom reprinted. 



Hy. 457.] 



and its Associations, 



243 



Hymn 452.— "Almighty God of Love."— A Sign and an Offer- 
ing.— Tune, Olney, 1761. 

This is made up of Nos. 1157, 1158, and 1159 of Charles 
Wesley's " Scripture Hymns," based on Isa. lxvi. 19, 20. 

Hymn 453. — " Sinners, the call obey." — For England. — Tune, 
Lampe's, 1746. 

Forms the fifth of Charles Wesley's " Hymns for Times of 
Trouble and Persecution," 1744; the third, fourth, and fifth 
verses of the original omitted. 

Hymn 454. — " God of unspotted purity." 

„ 455. — " O let us our own works forsake." 
Unto the Angel of the Church of the Laodiceans. — Tune, 
Athlone, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, forming part of a long hymn of thirty-six 
stanzas, in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, p. 296, founded 
on Rev. iii. 14-19. There are twenty-four verses of the original 
left out. Hymn 454 commences with verse 3 of the first part. 

Hymn 456. — " Father, if justly still we claim." 
„ 457. — " On all the earth Thy Spirit shower." 
On the Descent of the Holy Ghost at Pentecost. — Tune, Fulham, 

1761. 

These form part of a hymn written by Dr H. More (1614- 
1637), and altered by John Wesley. The first five verses of the 
original are left out ; the first line reads thus : — 

" When Christ had left His flesh below." 

This fine Pentecostal hymn has formed the theme of a most 
interesting paper, in a recent issue of the Wesleyan Magazine^ 
from the pen of the Rev. G. Osborn, D.D., in which the reader 
is presented with parts of the original by Dr More, and the 
altered version by John Wesley ; exhibiting the masterly hand 
of Wesley, and how " the fulness of the gospel salvation 
shines out in Wesley's rendering even more brightly than the 
genius of the poet." 

Henry More, D.D., was an able divine, born in 1614, at 
Grantham, and educated at Eton and Christ College, Cam- 
bridge. In 1675 he was made a prebend of Gloucester, but as 



244 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 462. 



he renounced the Calvinistic principles in which he had been 
rigidly brought up, he resigned his position in the church, and 
retired on a small competency, refusing high preferment, which 
was offered him. He died in 1687. Besides the two hymns 
which Mr Wesley used in an altered form, he was the author of 
" Song of the Soul," a Platonic poem, which was reprinted in 
1647 with additions. 

Hymn 458.—" Author of faith, we seek Thy face."— Of 'Interces- 
sion. — Tune, Smith's, 1781. 
Charles Wesley's, from No. 64 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1749, vol. ii. Three verses of the original are left out. 

Hymn 459.—" Shepherd of Israel, hear." 
„ 460. — " God of all power and grace." 
For the Fallen. — Tune, Brentford, 1761. 
These form together No. 65 in Charles Wesley's "Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The fourth and fifth verses 
of the original are left out. The last line of verse 4 is 
changed from " In perfect charity" to "harmony." 

Hymn 461. — "Saviour, to Thee we humbly cry!" — For the 
Fallen. — Tune, Mourners, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 72. This hymn appeared first at the end of a tract 
on the " Differences between the Moravians and the Wesleys," 
1745. The Moravians had taught that if a person professed 
faith in Christ, there was no necessity that he should manifest 
any sorrow on account of sins, past or present ; but that he 
should acknowledge himself to be a happy sinner, and rest satis- 
fied in that state. The term happy sinner being thus prostituted 
to unholy purposes, was reprobated in this hymn by the poet. 
Another of their errors was that of recommending an unscrip- 
tural stillness — teaching people to refrain from the use of reli- 
gious means and ordinances. This error is condemned by Mr 
Wesley in Hymn 295, verse 2, in the line — 

" While Satan cries— Be still." 

Hymn 462. — " O let the prisoners' mournful cries." — Hymn of 
Intercession. — Tune, Evesham, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 



Hy. 467.] and its Associations. 245 

vol. ii., No. 63. The original has eighteen stanzas. This hymn 
commences with the sixth verse, and includes all to the four- 
teenth ; the first five and the last four being omitted. 

H ymn 463. — " Lamb of God, who bear'st away." — For Times 
of Trouble and Persecution. — Tune, Dedication, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for Times of Trouble and 
Persecution," for the year 1745. The original has eight stanzas ; 
the first four only are given ; and the fifth and sixth lines of verse 
3 are transposed with the same lines of verse 4. 

Hymn 464. — Jesus, from Thy heavenly place." — Intercession. — 
Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 1025 of "Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i., founded on Isa. xxxiii. 5, 6. In the first line "holy" is 
changed for " heavenly," and in line 5 " salvation" is changed 
for " protection." 

Hymn 465. — " Sovereign of all ! whose Will ordains." — A Prayer 
for his Majesty King George [//.]. — Tune, Brockmers, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the tenth of " Hymns for the Times 
of Trouble and Persecution," 1744. The divine right of kings 
is strongly asserted in the first verse. At the time the hymn 
was written that dogma was in high dispute throughout the 
nation. The opinion of the Wesleys is clearly enough stated in 
the hymn. 

Hymn 466. — "A nation God delights to bless." — Intercession. — 
Tune, Snowsfield's, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 771 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i., founded on Job xxxiv. 29. The first and second verses 
of the original are left out. 

Hymn 467. — " Father of all, by whom we are." — For Parents. — 
Tune, Islington, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 63 of " Hymns for a Family." 
The original is in eight-line stanzas. The dangers to which 
many children are exposed by the neglect of parents are lucidly 
stated in the hymn, The need for divine wisdom in the train- 



246 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 475, 



ing of a family is impressively taught in the history of many 
households known as religious ones. 

Hymn 468. — " God only wise, almighty, good." — For a Family. 
— Tune, Mitcham, 1781. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for Families," No. 65. This 
fine and practical hymn inculcates some really invaluable les- 
sons for the proper government of a family. The "sacred 
clew" of the fourth verse, which guides persons in a labyrinth, 
and keeps them in the right way, is especially striking and sug- 
gestive. 

Hymn 469. — " Father of Lights ! Thy needful aid." — For a 
Family.— -Tune, St Paul's, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for Families." The fourth 
verse is omitted. 

Hymn 470. — " Master supreme, I look to Thee."— The Master's 
Hymn. — Tune, Angels' Song, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 135 of " Hymns for Families." 
It is written in eight-line stanzas, and is well worthy of daily 
perusal. 

Hymn 471.— "How shall I walk my God to please."— The 

Master's Hymn. — Tune, Snowsfield's, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 136 in " Hymns for Families." 
Two verses are left out. 

Hymn 472. — " I and my house will serve the Lord." — The 

Master's Hymn. — Tune, Travellers, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 137 of " Family Hymns." 

Hymn 473. — "Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." — At the 
Opening of a School in Kingswood. — Tune, Marienburn, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 40 of his " Hymns for Children," 
1763. It exhibits in a few words the true basis of education — 
'•knowledge and piety "learning and holiness." 

Hymn 474. — " Captain of our salvation, take." 
„ 475. — " But who sufficient is to lead." 
For Children.— -Tune, Frankfort, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, forming Nos. 41 and 42 of " Hymns for 



Hy. 478.] 



and its A ssociations. 



247 



Children," the original title being " At the Opening of a School 
in Kingswood." 

Hymn 476.—" Come, Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." — At the 
Baptism of Adults, — Tune, Palmis, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from No. 182, in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1 749, vol. ii. 

Hymn 477. — " Father, Son, and Holy Ghost." — At the Baptism 
of Adults.— TUNE, Hamilton's, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 183 in "Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The original was written for a female, 
as the seventh line reads — 

4 ' Bless for her the laving flood ; " 

and the feminine pronoun is used throughout. 

Hymn 478. — "And are we yet alive." — At the Meeting of 
Friends. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

This hymn forms No. 236 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. ii., page 321. 

The fourth verse of the original is omitted ; but it is given 
here because of its connexion historically with Methodism, this 
being the hymn which has been sung, more or less, at the open- 
ing of the Conference, for probably more than a century. It is 
also used at the opening of the conferences of other sections of 
the Methodist family. The last verse is as follows : — 

" Jesus, to Thee we bow, 

And for Thy coming wait ; 
Give us for good some token now, 

In our imperfect state ; 

Apply the hallowing word ; 

Tell each who looks for Thee, 
Thou shalt be perfect as thy Lord, 

Thou shalt be all like me." 

There seems to be something of discord between the sentiments 
conveyed in the third and fourth verses : in the former we read 
of the power of redeeming grace, which saves " Till we can sin 
no more ; " whilst in the latter verse, as given above, v/e read of 
our present being " our imperfect state." Taken together, it is 
evident that the poet means the sinless state of the third verse 



248 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 482. 

to refer to the state of the glorified saints. This seems the more 
evident from the two lines following : — 

''Let us take up the cross, 
Till we the crown obtain. " 

The singing of this hymn at the opening of Conference seems 
now to be an essential part of the graver duties of that venerable 
and deliberative assembly. This is the first hymn in the fifth 
part of the collection, the first section, with the title, " For the 
Society on Meeting." 

Hymn 479. — " Peace be on this house bestow'd."— The 
Salutation. — TUNE, Foundery, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 157. In the fourth line of the third verse, "pardoned" is 
substituted for " washed." 

Hymn 480.—" Glory be to God above." — At the Meeting of 
Christian Friends. — TUNE, Foundery, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 158. The original has six stanzas, the last three being left 
out. The seventh and eighth lines of the original read thus : — 
" Lasting comfort, steadfast hope ; 
Solid joy, and settled peace." 

Hymn 481.—" All thanks to the Lamb, Who gives us to meet." — 
At Meeting of Friends. — Tune, Newcastle, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 238. 

Hymn 482. — " Saviour of sinful men." — At the Meeting of 
Friends. — Tune, Lampe's, 1746. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 232 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The fourth verse of this hymn has been 
often used by the Lord's people in their extremities of life and 
suffering. 

When only seventeen years old, Jane, the wife of the Rev. 
Matthew Day, was convinced of sin ; and at the Watch-night 
service following, she was enabled to believe in Christ to the 
saving of her soul. Her friends not being Methodists, her path 
became one of trial ; but she remained firm in her religious 
course, and the Lord opened her way into a pleasant path, in 



Hy. 482.] and its Associations. 249 



which she walked with unfaltering fidelity during the rest of her 
pilgrimage. Her last illness was long and painful, but she mani- 
fested great patience, and her mind was stayed on God. When 
eternity was at hand, her joy absorbed every other feeling. Her 
last words to her husband were, " I hardly know anything but 
Jesus ; but very soon all will be new." After pausing a few 
moments, with unusual vigour she said — 

" O ! what a mighty change 

Shall Jesu's sufferers know, 
While o'er the happy plains they range, 

Incapable of woe ! 

No ill-requited love 

Shall there our spirits wound." 

She could say no more ; but after remaining a short time 
speechless, without a struggle, she ceased to breathe. 

For fifty-seven years, Richard Wade, of Sturton- Grange, 
Leeds, maintained a consistent Christian character. For many 
years he was a trustee, circuit and society steward, and the 
leader of a class. When laid aside by paralysis, he found 
comfort in repeating Wesley's hymns ; and shortly before he 
died, he said to his son — 

" O ! what a mighty change 
Shall Jesu's sufferers know, 
While o'er the happy plains they range, 
Incapable of woe ! " 
Thus peacefully he fell asleep in Jesus. 

Methodism was introduced into Marston, in the Isle of Wight, 
nearly a century ago. Under a sermon preached by Mr J. 
Moon, Mrs Caws was convinced of sin, and soon found peace by 
believing on Christ. Her parents opposed her union with the 
Methodists, but she held fast her profession, and the trial gave 
firmness to her character. She cherished a very high sense of 
the value of class-meetings, and never wilfully absented herself 
from them. While housekeeper to the Rev. Legh Richmond, 
author of the " Dairyman's Daughter/' she maintained her mem- 
bership with the Methodists ; and her Christian deportment was 
so exemplary that for some years after her marriage, and removal 
to Portsmouth, she was favoured with the cordial friendship of 
that eminent clergyman. During many years she sustained the 
office of class-leader with marked fidelity. Her last illness was 
short, but her joy at the prospect of heaven was unbounded. 



250 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 484. 



She said, " I am going home ; going to my Saviour ; going to 
glory !" The last night of her pilgrimage of eighty-six years 
was one of suffering ; but instead of murmuring, she said, " Oh 
that the cord were broken ; then would I fly away, and be at 
rest adding — 

" O ! what a mighty change 
Shall Jesus sufferers know, 
While o'er the happy plains they range, 
Incapable of woe ! " 
The dying saint then said, with an ecstasy of joy, "My Sabbath 
will be in heaven and at midnight of Saturday her released 
spirit fled to the mansions of light. 

We read in the Wesley an Magazine of the last hours of Mrs 
Jane Keys, of Lurgan, in Ireland, who at intervals so delightfully 
realised the glories of heaven, that she appeared in a state of 
rapture. With her hands clasped, and her eyes lifted up, she 
sweetly sang — 

" O ! what a mighty change 
Shall Jesu's sufferers know, 
When o'er the happy plains they range, 
Incapable of woe ! M 
In her last hour she said, " All is sunshine before me." How 
many thousands have thus been helped to realise heaven upon 
earth by the sweet hymns of Charles Wesley ? 

Hymn 483.— " Jesu, to Thee our hearts we lift." — At Meeting 
of Friends. — Tune, Norwich, 1761. 

Charles W 7 esley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 235. The fifth verse of the original is omitted, and 
alterations are made in three others. 

Hymn 484.-—" Appointed by Thee, We meet in Thy name.*— 

For Christian Friends. — Tune, Tallis, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii. The original is in six eight-line stanzas, single measure, 
the first being omitted. 

The hymn, as first written, commences thus : — 

" How happy the pair 

Whom Jesus unites, " &c. 

These lines suggest thoughts which are not fully conveyed by 



Hy. 484.] and its Associations. 



251 



the hymn in its abridged form as it appears in the Hymn-book. 
Its author, Charles Wesley, had spent nearly forty years in single 
blessedness that he might give himself up entirely to the work 
of preaching the gospel. In the very prime of life the thought 
crossed the poet's mind, " How know I whether it is best to 
marry or no ? " This thought soon attained maturity ; and 
having met with a fair young lady during his evangelistic labours 
in Wales, he consulted his brother John, who " neither opposed 
nor much encouraged " the interesting intercourse. Taking the 
still further advice of his estimable friend, good Vincent Per- 
ronet, vicar of Shoreham, that man of God encouraged him "to 
pray, and wait for a providential opening." He thought, and 
waited ; and " expressed the various searchings of his heart in 
many hymns on the important occasion." Charles Wesley was 
married by his brother John to Miss Sarah Gwynne, in a Welsh 
village church, at Garth, on Saturday, April 8, 1749, a day so 
fine that " not a cloud was to be seen from morning till night." 
Praise, prayer, and thanksgiving was the sole occupation of that 
day. John Wesley says of that occasion, "It was a solemn day, 
such as became the dignity of a Christian marriage." The 
opening verses of this marriage hymn are as follows : — 

" How happy the pair Whom Jesus unites 
In friendship to share Angelic delights, 
Whose chaste conversation Is coupled with fear, 
Whose sure expectation Is holiness here t 

"My Jesus, my Lord, Thy grace I commend, 
So kind to afford My weakness a friend, 
Thy only good pleasure On me hath bestowed 
A heavenly treasure, A servant of God." 

There were other hymns written on this occasion, amongst 
which portions will be found in the Hymn-book as Hymns 499, 
510, 512, 513, 514, and 524. 

At the age of forty, Watkin Lewis, of Berrieu, Montgomery, 
was convinced of sin owing to a bereavement, and found peace 
whilst wrestling with God alone. After a few years' membership, 
he was made a Methodist class-leader, which office he held 
nearly forty years. He was tried in his last illness, and asked 
for Isaiah xlix. to be read to him He then said, " The promises 
there have often been my support," and added : — 



252 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy, 491. 

44 O Jesus, appear ! No longer delay 
To sanctify here, And bear us away : 
The end of our meeting On earth let us see, 
Triumphantly sitting In glory with Thee ! " 

He died saying, " Praise the Lord ! Though He slay me, yet 

will I trust in Him!" 

Hymn 485. — " Jesu, we look to Thee."— At Meeting of Friends. 
—Tune, Brentford, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol ii., No. 237, the last verse being omitted. 

Hymn 486. — "See, Jesus, Thy disciples see."— At Meeting of 
Friends. — Tune, Swanling-Bar, 1791. 

Charles Wesley's, from u Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 239, with two verses omitted. 

HYMN 487.— "Two are better far than one." — For Christian 
Friends. — Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 227, with one verse of the original omitted. 

Hymn 488. — "How happy are we, Who in Jesus agree." — To be 
Sung at the Tea-table. — Tune, Builth, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 146 of " Hymns for Families." 
This commences the second section of the fifth part, with the 
title, " For the Society giving Thanks." There is a quickening 
and edifying spirit pervading this admirable hymn. 

Hymn 489. — " How good and pleasant 'tis to see." — For a 
Family. — Tune, York, 1761, 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 12 of " Hymns for Families." 

Hymn 490.*—" Behold, how good a thing." — Psalm cxxxiii. — 
Tune, Trumpet, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's version of Psalm cxxxiii., from " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1742, page 174. This was added after Mr 
Wesley's death. 

Hymn 491. — " Come away to the skies, My beloved, arise." — 
On the Birth-day of a Friend. — Tune, Smith, 1761. 
Forms No. 165 of Charles Wesley's "Hymns for Families." It 



/ 



Hy. 493 ] 



and its Associations. 



253 



was composed for the anniversary of the birth of his wife, Oct. 
12, 1755. 

Hymn 492. — "What shall we offer our good Lord." — God's 
Husbandry. — Tune, Evesham, 1761. 

This is John Wesley's translation from the German of 
Augustus G. Spangenberg, and is found in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1742, page 16. The original, which is in thirteen 
double stanzas, commences thus — 

' ' High on His everlasting throne." 

The first ten verses are omitted. The original German was 
given to Count Zinzendorf, on his birth-day, in the year 1734* 
James Montgomery has inserted the greater part of the hymn in 
his " Christian Psalmist." Speaking of the hymn in his preface 
to that work, Mr Montgomery says : " It contains one of the 
most consistent allegories in verse on the manner in which it 
hath pleased God, by the ministry of the gospel, to redeem a 
world from the desolation which sin hath made." Mr La Trobe 
has ascribed the translation of this hymn to Bishop Gambold, 
but the translation used by Mr Wesley was his own. 

The author, Augustus Gottlieb Spangenberg, was born of pious 
Lutheran parents, at Klettenberg, in Hanover, July 15, 1704. He 
was educated at the University of Jena, where he changed the 
study of law for the gospel. In 1727 he became acquainted with 
Count Zinzendorf, and in 1735 removed to the Moravian settle- 
ment at Herrnhut, from whence he was appointed to visit 
the churches of the Brethren in America, the West Indies, 
and England. He married one of the Sisters in 1740, and 
was afterwards ordained Bishop of Herrnhut. Much of his 
time subsequently was spent in missionary labours in America. 
After the death of Zinzendorf, he was considered the chief 
adviser of the Brethren. He died at Berthelsdorf, September 
18, 1792. Knapp designates him "The Melanchthon of the 
Brethren." 

Hymn 493. — " The people that in darkness lay." — Giving of 
Thanks. — Tune, Norwich, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, made up of five of his " Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., founded on Isaiah ix. 2-5, Nos. 974-978. 



254 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 494. 



Hymn 494. — " Lo ! God is here ! let us adore.' 1 — Public Wor- 
ship. — Tune, Sheffield, 1761. 

From "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a g e J 88. It is 
John Wesley's translation from the German of Gerhard Ter- 
steegen, and is based on Genesis xxviii. 16, 17. For an account 
of the author, see under Hymn 344. 

It is a truly noble composition ; " a hymn," says Mr Love, 
" that I should be glad to hear sung at the opening of divine 
service every Sabbath morning." The late Rev. Benjamin 
Clough, uncle of Mr Punshon, who went to India with Dr Coke, 
states that being in London with him, the Doctor said, " My 
dear brother, I am dead to all but India." Mr Clough thought 
over this remark, and these words occurred to his mmd : " They 
left all and followed Him." This raised Mr Clough's fainting 
spirits, and he began to sing the third verse of Hymn 494 — 

" Gladly the toys of earth we leave, 

Wealth, pleasure, fame, for Thee alone : 

To Thee our will, soul, flesh, we give ; 
O take, O seal them for Thine own ! 

Thou art the God, Thou art the Lord : 

Be Thou by all Thy works adored." 

Dr Coke heartily joined Mr Clough in singing that hymn of self- 
dedication. One knows not in which most to glorify the grace 
of God : the veteran of the cross, about to launch out into an 
enterprise of great magnitude ; or the devoted youth, strong in 
his victorious faith, driving away from his heart the evil spirit of 
fear by a burst of sacred song. 

Under a sermon preached by the venerable John Wesley, Mr 
W. Caudle, of Colchester, was induced to join the Methodist 
Society ; and, soon afterwards, he found peace in believing. He 
lived a godly and useful life, and died like a patriarch, in the full 
possession of his intellect, blessing and counselling his friends. 
A few hours before he died, he repeated, with much feeling, the 
couplet — 

*' Lo ! God is here ! let us adore, 

And own how dreadful is this place ! * 

He fell asleep in Jesus, faintly whispering to his family, a Good- 
bye ; God bless you ! " 



Hy. 498.] and its Associations. 



255 



Hymn 495. — " Come, let us arise, And press to the skies." — For 
Christian Friends. — TUNE, New Year's Day, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 204 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii., where it is printed in double verses, single 
measure. 

Hymn 496. — " The earth is the Lord's, And all it contains." — 
" Seek ye first the kingdom of God" Sec. — Tune, Triumph, 
1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 178 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The fourth verse of the original is omitted : 
it speaks of God's bounty in supplying us with daily food. 

Hymn 497. — " Come, all whoe'er have set." — On a Journey. — 
Tune, Cardiff, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 180 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. 

For forty-six years, Francis Beacham, of Clutton, Bristol, was 
a useful member of the Methodist Society, and a local preacher 
for forty years. There was a freshness and power in his preach- 
ing, which always secured for him a welcome in the circuit ; 
this was the result of his habit of intercessory prayer. He 
spent one hour every morning, before the family was up, in 
earnest devotion, and had brief family worship four times every 
day. During his illness, his mind was delightfully stayed on 
God. Shortly before he died, he said to his son, " Christ is 
mine, and I am His." Finding himself near the eternal world, 
he whispered — 

' * Nearer, and nearer still, 

We to our country come : 
To that celestial hill, 

The weary pilgrim's home, 
The New Jerusalem above, 
The seat of everlasting love." 

His end was most peaceful He died, breathing out — "Christ 
is precious !" 

Hymn 498. — " Come, let us anew Our journey pursue."— 6te a 
Journey,— Tune, Derby, 1781. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 181 in "Hymns and Sacred 



256 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 498. 



Poems," 1 749, vol. ii. The last lines of verses seven and eight 
are transposed ; that which was printed to the eighth verse 
is placed to the seventh. 

When about the age of twenty, Miss Jackman (afterwards 
Mrs Spencer, of Slaidburn, and mother-in-law to the Rev. Adam 
Fletcher) sought and found salvation through Christ, and 
became confirmed in her choice of the Methodists, chiefly 
through the ministry of the Rev. William B ram well. She was 
one of the first-fruits of Methodist preaching in her native place. 
By a course of uniform piety, and of more than ordinary de- 
votedness to God for sixty-five years, she proved the genuine- 
ness of the change wrought in her heart. Their house was 
opened for many years for preaching, and many were saved 
through the services. When nature was fairly worn out by 
age, she spent much of her time in repeating portions of the 
Word of God and verses of hymns ; and just before her death, 
she sung part of the hymn— - 

" Come, let us anew Our journey pursue ; 
With vigour arise, 
And press to our permanent place in the skies 

after which, peacefully and imperceptibly, she passed away to 
her " Fathers house above." 

For several years, Mrs M. M. Fison, of Barningham, Suffolk, 
was exercised with doubts as to her acceptance with God ; but 
soon after her last illness commenced, the Lord so powerfully 
manifested Himself, after she had agonised in prayer for the 
blessing, that from that period her joy was unbounded, and her 
delight was in telling every one how happy she was, and in 
urging them to seek the Lord. Her confidence in God was 
unshaken to the last, and just before the final struggle, after 
great agony of pain, she said, with sweet composure — 

" The fiercer the blast, The sooner 'tis past." 

Her last message, to her Thetford friends, was, " Tell them 
Jesus is precious." 

A life of only thirty years was allotted to Matilda Smedley, 
of Sandiacre, and during twenty of them she faithfully served 
the Lord. As a Sunday-school teacher and a collector for 
missions and the Bible Society, she was most diligent and 
successful. Two years of affliction were appointed to her ; but 



Hy. 499-1 



and its Associations. 



257 



patience had its perfect work. On the day of her death, refer- 
ring to the difficulty of breathing, she said, " It is hard work ; 
but— 

c The fiercer the blast, The sooner 'tis past : 
And the troubles that come 
Shall come to our rescue, and hurry us home. ' " 

Her dying prayer was, " Bless me, even me, O my Father." 

Hymn 499. — " Come, let us ascend, My companion and 
friend." — For Christian Friends. — Tune, Builth, 1761. 

This appears in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii., No. 231, and is printed in single mea- 
sure. The poet embodies in this vigorous hymn the apostle's 
climax, " The greatest of these is charity." Writing of this 
hymn, the seraphic Fletcher, of Madeley, says, " When the 
triumphal chariot of perfect love gloriously carries you to the 
top of perfection's hill ; when you are raised far above the com- 
mon heights of the perfect ; when you are almost translated 
into glory, like Elijah, then you may sing the 499th Hymn." 

One of the many converts to God, through the ministry of that 
blessed man of God, Joseph Sutcliffe, was Richard Buttle, of 
Hull. At the age of sixteen, he gave his heart to the Lord. In 
after life, he served in the office of class-leader and local 
preacher, with acceptance and profit to those who heard him. 
On the Sunday on which he died, his confidence in God was 
strong, and his prospect of heaven bright. He repeated the 
lines to a friend sitting by him — 

" Come, let us ascend, My companion and friend, 
To a taste of the banquet above ; 
If thy heart be as mine, If for Jesus it pine, 
Come up into the chariot of love;" 

and added, " Oh for a gust of praise !" After urging his 
daughter to live to God, he peacefully entered into rest. 

The reading of Baxter's " Saints' Rest," was blessed to the 
conversion of Miss Nancy Holland, of Kerridge, Macclesfield, 
when she was nineteen. Soon afterwards, she joined the 
Methodist Society, and maintained a consistency of conduct 
through life. A sudden and unexpected illness closed her 
earthly career ; but though fever prostrated her strength, her 

R 



258 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 50a 



mind was kept in peace. Shortly before her departure she 
desired that Hymn 499 should be read to her. After the sixth 
verse was read — 

" Hallelujah, they cry, To the King of the sky, 
To the great everiasting I AM ; 
To the Lamb that was slain, And liveth again, 
Hallelujah to God and the Lamb ! " 

she was enraptured, and seemed ready to mingle with the celes- 
tial throng of the redeemed before the throne, whither her happy 
spirit soon fled, her last words being, "Jesus is precious." 

A miller and baker in a country village has many tempta- 
tions to Sabbath-breaking ; but in the case of Thomas Palmer, 
of Eye, Peterborough, the temptation was invariably resisted. 
For more than thirty years he was a consistent Methodist, 
and later in life a useful class-leader and circuit steward. In 
his last illness he was reduced to such extreme debility, that he 
could scarcely speak ; but just previous to his death, to the 
surprise of all his friends, he broke out, and sang most delight- 
fully— 

" A day without night We feast in His sight, 
And eternity seems as a day ! " 

He continued to sing at intervals some of his favourite hymns 
till within an hour of his peaceful departure to heaven. 

Hymn 500 .* — " All praise to our redeeming Lord." — At Meeting 
of Friends. — Tune, Birstal, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from Hymns for those that seek Redemp- 
tion, 1747, page 63. It was added after Mr Wesley's death. 

The lengthened widowhood of Mrs Isabella Day, of Bere- 
Heath, Dorchester, was spent in helping forward the work of 
God. When severely afflicted, she did not absent herself from 
the means of grace. On the eve of her last day on earth, 
the usual weekly prayer meeting was held at her house, when 
she prayed with great energy, and, at its close, gave out and 
sung — 

" And if our fellowship below 
In Jesus be so sweet, 
What heights of rapture shall we know 
When round His throne we meet ! 99 



Hy. 501.] 



and its Associations. 



259 



On the following morning her happy spirit went to realise those 
raptures. 

Hymn 501. — "Jesus, great Shepherd of the sheep." — For Be- 
lievers. — Tune, Wednesbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 136. The seventh verse of the original is left out. 

Many chapel-keepers have had to thank God for enabling 
them to realise the truth of the Psalmist's declaration, that it is 
better to be a door-keeper in the Lord's house than to dwell in 
the tents of wickedness. Such an one was Samuel Simpson, of 
Chapeltown, Leeds. He had been a useful Methodist from the 
age of twenty. One day, while he was at work in one of the stone- 
quarries near Leeds, both his legs were accidentally broken, and 
from the first all hope of recovery was gone. He exultingly 
endured his acute sufferings, saying, " Jesus is mine, and I am 
His." Among his last words to his friends, who visited him in 
the Infirmary, were these — 

* 4 Together let us sweetly live, 
Together let us die ; 
And each a starry crown receive, 
And reign above the sky." 

Shortly afterwards, his released spirit escaped to heaven. 

Another instance of the value of Wesley's Hymns, almost at 
the hour of death, is recorded in the Wesleyan Magazine in 
connection with the sudden death of Mr Charles Copland, of 
Etruria. The writer of the notice alludes to the last service for 
social worship which he attended, when he expressed his delight 
that eleven new members were added to the Society, and after he 
had received his ticket of membership, part of Hymn 501 was 
sung. Mr Copland set the tune, and sang heartily the lines : — ■ 

" Together let us sweetly live, 
Together let us die ; 
And each a starry crown receive, 
And reign above the sky." 

He walked home, joining in religious conversation ; on arriving 
at his residence, he became suddenly unconscious, and in an 
hour he passed from the singing of hymns on earth to join in 
the everlasting song above. 



260 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 503. 



Hymn 502. — " Come, Thou omniscient Son of Man."— For any 

who think they have already attained {full redemption). — 
Tune, Fetter-lane, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 124. Three verses of the original are left out. 

Hymn 503. — "Try us, O God, and search the ground." — A 
Prayer for Persons joined in Fellowship. — Tune, Brooks, 
1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 83. The original is a long hymn in four parts, of which 
this is the first. 

No hymn in the collection has been more frequently used in 
social worship. Objectors are occasionally found to the 
couplet : — 

" When to the right or left we stray, 
Leave us not comfortless" — 

implying that even out of the narrow path that leads to heaven 
wanderers might hope for the Holy Spirit's comforting presence. 
The poet rather prays that prodigals may not be abandoned 
when in the broad way that leads to destruction. This hymn 
has afforded consolation and encouragement to followers of Jesus 
in various conditions of experience. In the Local Preacher's 
Magazine for 1852, there is an account of the last days of George 
Machin, of Stockport, who, in early life, had been bandmaster 
to a volunteer corps. When he became a Methodist he gave 
up his military pursuits. His last illness was severe, but in the 
midst of much suffering he would point towards heaven and 
sing— 

44 There all the ship's company meet, 

Who sailed with the Saviour beneath," &c. 

On the Monday he raised himself up in bed, and gave out in a 
firm voice part of Hymn 503, affixing a favourite tune, and, 
joined by those friends who surrounded him, sang with sur- 
prising influence and power the verse — 

" Then, when the mighty work is wrought, 
Receive thy ready bride ; 
Give us in heaven a happy lot 
With all the sanctified." 



Hy. 503.] 



and its Associations. 



The last two lines were repeated again and again, the dying 
pilgrim concluding his song with a fervent Amen. The next 
day he exchanged mortality for life. 

As far back as 1762, John Middleton, of Hartlepool, saw in 
Methodism that which led him to leave the communion of the 
Church of England in which he had been brought up. He 
opened his house for preaching, and a society has been con- 
tinued there up to the present time. From the time of his 
joining the Society, he maintained a uniform cleaving to God in 
Christ as his all in all ; and a peaceful end closed a holy life. 
During his last illness he repeated a favourite verse which he had 
often sung at family worship — 

" Then, when the mighty work is wrought, 

Receive thy ready bride ; 
Give us in heaven a happy lot 

With all the sanctified." 
In this state of peaceful tranquillity he remained till his death. 

In the year 1800, a young man named John Wilkinson came 
to London from York, and being a Methodist, went to the Book- 
room to buy some paper on which to write to his mother. Mr 
George Whitfield, the book steward, invited the young man 
to his class, which met at City Road every Sunday morning at 
six o'clock. He continued a member of that class for sixty 
years : one of the other members was the late venerable 
Dr Leifchild. Soon after joining Mr Whitfield's class, Mr 
Wilkinson joined the Community, and in this self-denying 
service laboured hard and long to benefit the sick and poor in 
destitute localities. He loved his Bible, was attached to all the 
means of grace, and was a cheerful happy Christian. He com- 
memorated the dying love of the Saviour in City Road Chapel 
on the first Sabbath of March 1862 ; and on the last Sabbath of 
that month he was drinking the wine new with Christ in His 
kingdom above. In allusion to his own expected removal, 
during his last few days, he often sang — 

" Then, when the mighty work is wrought, 
Receive thy ready bride ; 
Give us in heaven a happy lot 
With all the sanctified." 
He enjoyed robust health for nearly eighty-seven years ; and as 
the weary wheels of life were standing still, he faintly whispered, 
" My Saviour ! my Saviour !" 



262 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 509. 



Hymn 504. — "Jesus, united by thy grace." — A Prayer for Persons 
joined in Fellowship. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the fourth part of a long hymn, of 
which No. 503 is the first part. 

Hymn 505.— " Unchangeable, Almighty Lord/'— "He that 
believeth shall not make haste." — Tune, Zoar, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 173, founded on Isaiah xxxvii. 16. The original is in four 
parts, of which this forms the third, and Hymn 280 the fourth 
pait. The soft and easy flow of the language accords admirably 
with the gentle spirit which pervades the hymn. 

Hymn 506. — " Father of our dying Lord." — For the Day ofPente- 
cost.— Tune, Amsterdam, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 166, founded on John xiv. 16, 17. 

Hymn 507. — " Saviour of all, to thee we bow." — " Unto the angel 
of the Church of Laodicea? &c. — Tune, Invitation, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 300, founded on Rev. iii. 14, &c. The original is a long 
hymn in three parts ; this forms the first portion of the third 
part, with some verses omitted. Hymn 454 is part of the same. 
A writer in the Southern Methodist Quarterly, vol. ii. (American), 
remarking on this hymn, says, "As faith is a receiving and 
appropriating, not a bestowing nor imparting grace, there have 
been objections to the line, 1 The heavenly manna faith imparts.'" 

HYMN 508.—" God of love, that hear'st the prayer." — For those 
that have found Redemptio?i. — Tune, Foundery, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for those that seek Redemp- 
tion," 1747, page 19. Portions of four of the verses are omitted. 

Hymn 509. — "Jesus, Lord, we look to thee." — For a Family.— 
Tune, Hotham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 146. 



Hy. 510.] 



and its Associations, 



263 



HYMN 510. — "Thou God of truth and love." — For Christian 
Friends. — Tune, Fonmon, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. 
ii., No. 203. The original has seven verses, the last of which is 
omitted. The sixth verse commences thus, " O might the Spirit 
seal," — "might" is changed for "may." The hymn contains a 
graceful expression of sympathy and unity between married 
souls. 

The work of a Methodist preacher was never what a worldly 
man would envy, and up to the close of the last century, and for 
some twenty years in the present century, a Sabbath-day's toil 
for an earnest preacher would have been a "weariness of the 
flesh" indeed, had not the heart been engaged. With a burning 
love for souls, Jabez Bunting, D.D., once said, " Many attribute 
their conversion to their having attended a love-feast ; I owe 
mine to having been shut out of one." Excluded from that 
means of grace by the firm discipline of Mr Alexander Mather, 
he went home to pray ; " and he is now in paradise, praising 
God for the transactions of that hour." He was born May 
1779, and commenced to travel in 1799. In 1803 he was located 
in London, where he was stationed when he was married, and 
resided near Long Lane, Southwark. 

An entry in his journal at this period furnishes an illustration 
of the use of this hymn, which will be read with interest. He 
proceeds as follows: — "Sunday evening, September 11 [1803]. 
— At half-past ten I read prayers at Snowsfields Chapel, in the 
Borough, and preached from 1 John i. 9. I begin to feel a little 
more at home in the pulpits of the metropolis and its vicinity, 
than I did when I first came. ... At three o'clock I began 
to give tickets at Rotherhithe ; at six, I preached there from 
Luke xv. 2, and was enabled, as Mr Wesley used to phrase it, 
' to speak some strong, rough words.' After finishing the renewal 
of tickets, I walked home. Mr Taylor (superintendent of the 
circuit) came a little after me, and says this has been the hardest 
day's work he has ever performed since he left Cornwall, many 
years ago. We tried to rouse each other by singing — 
' O may Thy Spirit seal 

Our souls unto that day, 
With all Thy fulness fill, 
And then transport away ! 



264 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 518. 

Away to our eternal rest, 
Away to our Redeemer's breast ! ' — 
but we had not strength enough to finish the verse ; so we gave 
it up, and began to talk about Macclesfield," — from which plnce 
he had married Miss Maclardie only a short time previously. 

Hymn $ 1 1. — " Forgive us,for Thy mercy's sake." — For a Preacher 
of the Gospel — M OSes' Wish. — Tune, Canterbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. i., No. 181, the first verse of the original being omitted. 
Founded on Exodus xxxiii. 12 to xxxiv. 9. 

Hymn 512. — "Centre of our hopes Thou art." — For Christicui 
Friends. — Tune, Dedication, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 236, the first verse being left out. 

Hymn $13. — "Jesus, with kindest pity see." — For Christian 
Friends. — Tune, Marienburn, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 199. There is an unwonted ambiguity in some of the 
phraseology used by the poet in this hymn. 

HYMN 514.-—" Father, at Thy footstool see."— For Christian 
Friends. — Tune, Plymouth, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 194. The two last verses of the original are left out. 
The first verse is an address to God the Creator ; the second to 
Jesus the Saviour ; the third to the Heavenly Comforter ; the 
fourth to the United Trinity. The petitions are distinct and 
appropriate. The hymn is also remarkable for the rhyme being 
between first and second, and third and fourth verses, instead 
of between alternate lines. 

Hymn 515. — " Father, Son, and Spirit, hear." 
„ 516. — " Other ground can no man lay." 
„ 517. — " Christ, our Head, gone up on high." 
„ 518. — " Christ, from whom all blessings flow." 
The Communion of Saints— Tunes, Love-feast, Salisbury, and 
Ascension, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being four parts of a long hymn from 



Hy. 526.] 



and its Associations. 



265 



" Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, page 188. Portions of some 
verses of the original, and the whole of others, are left out. 
When the Church of Christ realises in its members' experience 
the conditions which are stated in the concluding stanza, we 
shall rejoice in the blessings of millennial glory. 

Hymn 519. — " Come, and let us sweetly join." 
„ 520. — " Come, thou high and lofty Lord ! " 
„ 521. — " Let us join ('tis God commands)." 
„ 522. — "Partners of a glorious hope." 
The Love-Feast. — Tunes, Love-feast, Cookham, Foundery, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 181. This hymn, which is in five parts, and includes, in 
the whole, twenty-two double stanzas, immediately precedes, in 
the original, the four which it here follows. The whole of the 
fifth part is omitted. The last lines of this hymn were inserted 
by Hogarth on one of his caricatures. 

Hymn 523.—" O Thou, our Husband, Brother, Friend.' '—Hymn 
of Intercession. — Tune, Purcell, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 62. The two last verses of the original are left out. 

Hymn 524. — " Our friendship sanctify and guide." — For 
Christian Friends. — Tune, 113th Psalm, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 195, commencing with the second verse of the 
original. This hymn was specially written by the poet for him- 
self and his brother, which will at once account for the personal 
character of the phraseology. 

Hymn 525. — " Jesu, thou great redeeming Lord." — " The Grace 
of our Lord Jesus Christ? &c. — Tune, 112th Psalm, 1761. 

Forms the last of Charles Wesley's "Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol ii., No. 807 ; founded on the benediction in Rev. xxii. 21. 

Hymn 526. — " Except the Lord conduct the plan." — For a 
Family of Believers.— -Tune, Musicians, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Family Hymns," page 37. A hymn 
full of earnest devotional feeling. 

It has been used on tens of thousands of occasions, in asking 



266 



The Metlwdist Hymn-Book [Hy. 529. 



for divine guidance, in private, social, and public services, 
especially at the opening of all deliberative assemblies for pro- 
moting the spread of the work of God. 

In the early part of his life, Richard Harwood, of Darwen, 
Blackburn, entered the army, and whilst abroad was afflicted in 
his eyes, and ultimately lost his sight. For thirty years after 
leaving the army, he was a zealous Methodist, and for eighteen 
years a class-leader. He was remarkable for punctuality and 
early attendance at the class and prayer meetings, and the 
public ministry of the Word. His death was sudden. He had 
been at the six o'clock Sunday morning prayer meeting, and at 
nine attended to open the Sunday-school by singing and prayer. 
Having given out, and joined in singing, the verse — 

u Except the Lord conduct the plan, 
The best-concerted schemes are vain, 

And never can succeed : 
We spend our wretched strength for nought : 
But if our works in Thee be wrought, 

They shall be blest indeed ; " 

immediately, without a groan, "he ceased at once to work and 
live/' 

Hymn 527. — " Come, Wisdom, Power, and Grace Divine."— For 
a Family of Believers. — Tune, Snowsfields, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Family Hymns," page 39. 

Hymn 528. — "O Saviour, cast a gracious smile." — For a Family 
of Believers. — Tune, Chapel, 1 761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Family Hymns/' 1757, page 40. 

Hymn 529. — " Holy Lamb, who Thee confess." — For a Family 
of Believers. — Tune, Hotham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Family Hymns," 1757, page 41. 
The original is printed in four-line stanzas. 

Some have taken objection to the closing couplet of the hymn, 

" Till we, on the sacred tree, 
Bow the head, and die like Thee." 

It is manifest that the poet did not mean in any way to counte- 
nance Romish practices. 



Hy. 534.] and its Associations. 



267 



Hymn 530. — "Come, Thou all-inspiring Spirit." — For a Family 
of Believers. — Tune, Westminster, 1761. 
Charles Wesley's, from " Family Hymns," 1757, page 42. 

Hymn 531. — " Christ, whose glory fills the skies." — A Plant of 
Renown: Ezekiel xxxiv. 29, 30. — Tune, Kingswood, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 1267 of "Scripture Hymns" 
(1762), vol. i., based on Ezekiel xxxiv. 29, 30. The editor of 
Toplady's Works has, in error, given the authorship of this 
hymn to that clergyman. James Montgomery has selected the 
first verse of this and two verses of Hymn 156 to make a hymn 
for his " Christian Psalmist." 

Hymn 532. — " Come, let us use the grace divine." — " Join our- 
selves to the Lord in a covenant." — Tune, Brockmer, 1761. 

This forms No. 1242 of Charles Wesley's "Scripture Hymns" 
(1762), vol. ii., and is based on Jeremiah 1. 5. The original was 
written in three double stanzas. This hymn is frequently used, 
both in England and America, at the renewing of the Covenant 
by the Methodist societies. The appropriateness of the language 
and sentiment are remarkable, the more so as the hymn was not 
designed for any such service ; although the words of the prophet 
indicate such a dedication : " Come let us join ourselves to the 
Lord in a perpetual covenant, that shall not be forgotten." 

Hymn 533.—" Lord, we Thy will obey."— At Parting '.—Tune, 
Trumpet, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 209. This hymn commences the fourth section, 
with the title, " For the Society at Parting." The poet, with 
his usual skill, has wrested from infidels a sentiment which 
has at times been frequently quoted by them : as Christians, 
Mr Wesley writes : — 

" We, only we, can say, 
4 Whatever is, is best/ " 

HYMN 534---" Blest be the dear uniting love."— At Parting of 
Christian Friends. — Tune, Aldrich, 1761. 

From Charles Wesley's "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 159. The fifth and sixth verses of the original are left out, 



26S 



The Methodist Hymn-Book , [Hy. 537. 



and the others altered. This hymn is inserted in the New Con- 
gregational Hymn-book, and erroneously ascribed to Cennick. 

HYMN 535.—-" And let our bodies part."— At Parting. — TUNE, 
Lampe's, 1746. 

From Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 233. The original is in two parts, the second of 
which is entirely omitted. When the Rev. Robert Newton was 
last leaving New York to return home, his American friends, 
standing on a separate steamer alongside, joined very heartily 
in singing this hymn. (See " Life of Rev. R. Newton," page 222.) 

Hymn 536. — " Jesus, accept the praise." — At the Parting of 
Friends. — Tune, Trumpet, 1781. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 48 of "Redemption Hymns," 
1747. There are some sublime thoughts in this hymn ; the 
sixth verse is especially worthy of notice. 

Hymn 537.—" God of all consolation, take." — At Parting of 
Friends. — Tune, Liverpool, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, forming part of a paraphrase of Revelation 
vii. 9, in " Hymns on Redemption," 1747, page 68. The original 
is printed in double stanzas ; parts of the first and second are 
omitted. 

It was the privilege of John C. Clendinnen, formerly a preacher 
in the Irish Conference, to be brought to a knowledge of the 
truth through the ministrations of the early Methodist preachers, 
and whilst a youth he heard a sermon by the venerable John 
W T esley, who, according to his custom, laid his hands on his 
head, and invoked a blessing on him. In 1796 he commenced 
his itinerant labours, and suffered much from persecution during 
the Irish rebellion. In those troublesome times, whilst holding 
a love-feast, he was seized and sent to prison, and on his way 
thither reproved the officer in command for profane swearing, 
an act which converted an enemy into a friend. After a pilgrim- 
age over the greater part of Ireland, extending to more than 
fourscore years, he delighted as much as ever in the Word of 
God and in Wesley's hymns. His wife, shortly before he died, 
quoting — 

" Our souls are in His mighty hand, 
And He shall keep them still," 



Hy. 537.] 



and its Associations, 



269 



he took up with much energy and joy the remainder of the 
verse — 

" And you and I shall surely stand, 
With Him on Zion's hill ; " 

adding, " Sing it ! sing it ! " Shortly afterwards he tried to say, 
" Hallelujah," but the unfinished word died on his lips as he 
escaped to paradise. 

In the morning of her days, Elizabeth Jackson, wife of the 
Rev. Robert Jackson, received the evidence of her acceptance 
with God, and through much painful suffering she held fast her 
confidence to the end of her life. During her later years 
she made the Bible and Wesley's Hymns her constant com- 
panions ; and when eternity was in full view she said of her 
troubles, " The Lord hath gently cleared my way : I can still 
praise Him ; I shall find it all right soon : — 

' Him eye to eye we there shall see, 

Our face like His shall shine ; 
O what a glorious company, 

When saints and angels join !' " 

Half-an-hour before her mortal sickness she was working for a 
missionary basket, and remarked, as she laid her work down, 
" I love the mission cause." In peaceful serenity she entered 
her " Father's house on high." 

The parents of Mary Worth, mother of the Rev. W. Worth, 
were amongst the first Methodist converts in Tiverton. When 
Mr Wesley first formed the Society there, he invited all who felt 
a desire to " flee from the wrath to come " to meet him at his 
lodgings after preaching. Amongst those who went were John 
and Sarah Tipper. They went in different parties ; neither 
knew what the other had done till they met at home. " I have 
joined the society," said one ; " So have I," said the other ; and 
they were both faithful till death. Mary, their eldest daughter, 
received the evidence of pardon whilst communing at the Lord's 
Supper, in her twenty-third year. She suffered much during 
life, but endured with patience the Lord's will. When death 
was at hand, she said, "The Lord does comfort and support 
me ; He is my portion for ever." On another occasion she said, 
" Sing glory, glory ! " Speaking of heaven, clapping her hands, 
and looking upward, she added— 



270 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 537. 



" i Palms in our hands we all shall bear, 
And crowns upon our head.' 

The Lord is my portion." Within a few minutes of her death 
she repeated — 

" To patient faith the prize is sure," &c. ; 

and in that peaceful frame passed into the skies. 

It was under the ministry of the Rev. Walter Griffith, in Lon- 
don, that Mrs Bywater, of Temple-Newsam, was convinced of 
sin, and led to give her heart to the Lord. Henceforth the de- 
sire of her life was to bring others to Jesus. She watched for 
souls ; she wept for souls ; she agonised in prayer for souls ; 
and in her sphere she laboured for souls ; and God crowned her 
efforts by using her in plucking " brands from the burning." 
She had a seventy years' pilgrimage on earth without much sick- 
ness ; her last illness was short ; the feebleness of age crept 
upon her, and when near the end of life's journey she found com- 
fort by her friends reading to her verses of Charles Wesley's 
hymns. When a friend had ceased, on the last occasion, she 
herself gave out, with all the emphasis she could — 

" Then let us lawfully contend, 

And fight our passage through ; 
Bear in our faithful minds the end, 
And keep the prize in view." 

In this happy state she continued for a short time, when she 
entered into rest. . 

Michael Ward, of Greenheys, Manchester, was converted to 
God in his youth, and throughout life he faltered not in his 
fidelity to the truth and in his attachment to the cause of God. 
He loved the sanctuary, and took special delight in the services. 
The last three times he met his class he gave out the verse : — 

" Then let us hasten to the day 

When all shall be brought home ! 
Come, O Redeemer ! come away, 
O Jesus, quickly come !" 

A few hours before his death, he solemnly commended his wife 
and family to the guardian care of his heavenly Father. He 
was hurriedly caught up to his rest in heaven. 



HY. 539.] 



and its Associations, 



271 



Hymn 538.— "Jesus, soft, harmonious Name." — At parting of 
Christian Friends. — Tune, Hotham, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 243. 

Hymn 539. — " Lift up your hearts to things above." — At parting 
of Christian Friends. — Tune, Wednesbury, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., page 331, No. 244. The original is in twelve four-line 
stanzas, the third and eighth being omitted, and the ninth and 
tenth transposed. 

This hymn forms the last in the collection as it was published 
by John Wesley in 1780, and it is there No. 525. All the hymns 
which follow have been added as supplements at various periods, 
Other Methodist bodies which have adopted these hymns have 
added to this portion the short hymn commencing — " Lord, 
dismiss us with thy blessing." 



THE ADDITIONAL HYMNS. 

Some years after Mr Wesley's death, the Hymn-Book under- 
went very considerable revision and alteration, and in this form 
it appeared in 1797. A copy of the book, with the alterations 
marked, is now before us. How that book was received by the 
Conference and by the people may be gathered by the answer 
to Question 27 in the " Minutes" of 1798. It reads thus : " Dr 
Coke, and Brothers Storey, Moore, and Clarke, are appointed 
to reduce the large Hymn-Book to its primitive simplicity, as 
published in the second edition [in 1781], with liberty to add a 
word now and then, in the way of notes, to explain a difficult 
passage, for the sake of the unlearned ; and a discretionary 
power is given them in respect to the additional hymns." The sale 
of the 1797 edition was stopped, and the unsold copies destroyed. 

The annotated edition of the Hymn-Book provided by autho- 
rity of this resolution did not give much more satisfaction than 
its predecessor, so far as the notes were concerned. These were 
afterwards left out, so that the edition with the notes is scarce. 
We have a copy before us, and venture to think that it was 
wisely determined to print the book as Mr Wesley prepared it, 



7J2 The Methodist Hymn-Book [H\ r . 540. 



with the addition of some twenty-two hymns, commencing with 
Hymn 540 and ending with Hymn 560. As, however, amongst 
these additional hymns there were none which gave the Confer- 
ence a copyright in the collection, other parties continued to 
publish the book, and the people in the provinces bought 
largely of these unofficial editions, partly because they were a 
little cheaper, and sometimes they had the attraction of a little 
brighter binding. As at this time there appears to have been 
only three editions of the Hymn-Book issued by the Conference, 
we learn by the " Minutes" of 1801, Question 13, that the prices 
of these were as follows: — The Small Pocket Hymn-Rook, is. 3d., 
with clasp, is. 6d. ; The Large Pocket Hymn-Book (i8mo},3s.6d., 
with clasp, 4s. ; The Large Hymn-Book (i2mo), 4s. 6d. A 
Nota Bene was added, very wisely, urging the societies not to 
purchase any but the Book-room editions. In this form the 
book continued to be published till 1830, when the Supplement 
was added. 

Hymn 540. — " Before Jehovah's awful throne." — Paraphrase of 
Psalm C. — Tune, 100th Psalm. 

Dr Watts' version of the Hundredth Psalm, second metre 
(17 19). It was altered by Mr Wesley, and inserted by him in 
his Collection of Psalms and Hymns, third edition, enlarged, 
1744. The first verse of the original is left out ; the second 
verse, as published by Dr Watts, commences as follows : — 

" Nations attend before His throne 

With solemn fear, with sacred joy." 

These lines John Wesley has substituted by two others, which 
give increased solemnity and grandeur to the whole hymn. 
They are as follows : — 

" Before Jehovah's awful throne, 

Ye nations bow with sacred joy." 

Never was a transformation more complete than the one made 
by this alteration. From being a hymn comparatively un- 
noticed and unnoticeable, it has been made one of solemnity, 
power, and sublimity. Many of the great celebrations of re- 
ligious ordinances both in England and in America have, for 
more than a century, been commenced by the singing of this 
commanding poetical address to the Deity. 

The late Dr Dempster, while senior professor in the Garrett 



Hy. 540.] 



and its Associations, 



273 



Biblical Institute, America, related substantially the following 
facts. He and his wife, while on their way to South America, 
with two other missionaries and their wives bound for other 
fields, were pursued three days by a pirate vessel. As their 
disguised enemy, refusing to exchange salutations, came near, 
all went on deck and united in singing to the tune of Old 
Hundred, the hymn commencing — 

" Before Jehovah's awful throne, 
Ye nations bow with sacred joy ; 
Know that the Lord is God alone, 
He can create and He destroy." 

Kneeling in prayer they awaited what appeared to be their 
certain doom, unless God especially interfered to save them. 
The Lord delivered them from the mouths of cannon and the 
wrath of men, who waited a time near the side of the missionary 
ship, then turned and left. Are we pursued by enemies, let us 
resort to true, earnest prayer, and living faith. We give this 
incident from the North-Western Christian Advocate ; and at 
the time we write we are privileged with the personal friend- 
ship, in London, of the Rev. Dr Bannister, the contemporary of 
Dr Dempster, and his successor in the professorship. 

Possessing an athletic frame, a mind of great energy, and 
a natural fearless daring, John Marris, of Stallingborough, 
Grimsby, was distinguished amongst his worldly companions for 
folly and dissipation. In 1785 he was convinced of sin through 
a sermon preached by the Rev. L. Harrison, and soon after- 
wards found peace in believing under a sermon by the Rev. 
George Holder. His clear perception of divine truth made him 
a great blessing to many dwelling in the darkness which sur- 
rounded him ; and as a class-leader and local preacher he was 
earnest, affectionate, firm, and stimulating. He was a good 
man, and carried the power of his goodness about with him. 
God spared his useful life for eighty-three years, and when death 
was at hand he maintained his confidence in God unshaken. 
With great strength of voice and fervour of spirit, just before he 
died, he repeated — 

" Wide as the world is Thy command ; 
Vast as eternity Thy love ; 
Firm as a rock Thy truth shall stand, 
When rolling years shall cease to move." 

S 



274 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [H\*. 541. 



And shortly afterwards he faintly breathed out, " I am bound 
for the Kingdom : go to glory with me ; " and so he entered into 
rest. 

Hymn 541. — " Lord of the worlds above." — Longing for the 
House of God, 

Dr Watts' paraphrase of Psalm lxxxiv. This was inserted in 
Mr Wesley's "Collection of Psalms and Hymns," 1738 ; and 
also in the same work enlarged, in 1744, with the second and 
fifth verses of the original omitted. 

In the year 1788, Thomas Kiddear, of Ashby-de-la-Zouch, was 
awakened to a sense of his lost condition as a sinner, under the 
ministry of the Rev. George Gibbon, and soon after obtained 
the remission of sins. As a class-leader from 1809, a leader in 
singing and in prayer-meetings, a trustee, and Society steward, he 
served God and Methodism faithfully for fifty-two years. In his 
last illness, during one of his nights of pain, he was praising 
God ; and amongst other hymns in which the privileges of 
Christian believers are described, he repeated the whole of the 
one commencing — 

" Lord of the worlds above ! 

How pleasant and how fair 
The dwellings of Thy love, 

Thy earthly temples, are ! 
To Thine abode my heart aspires, 
With warm desires to see my God. " 

He found Christ precious, till his released spirit departed to be 
where He reigns alone. 

The name of Agar stands honourably connected with Method- 
ism in York for nearly a hundred years. Benjamin Agar, the 
elder, heard both John and Charles Wesley preach in London, 
and when he returned to York he had the honour of entertaining 
J. Wesley at his house, on the occasion of his last visit to that 
city. During that visit, both his children had Mr Wesley's 
hands laid on their heads, and received the good man's blessing. 
Joseph became a preacher among the Methodists, and his 
brother Benjamin found pardon in early life, whilst at prayer in 
a poor but godly man's cottage. He gave up much of party 
politics and worldly influence to devote his time to the interests 
of religion. He served the office of class-leader well, and gave 



Hy. 544.] and its Associations. 



275 



liberally of his substance to promote Methodism. When laid 
aside by illness, he was graciously sustained, saying, " The 
everlasting arms are around me. The Lord is very good ; He 
supports me.' 7 He frequently repeated this verse— 

" The Lord His people loves ; 

His hand no good withholds 
From those His heart approves, 

From holy, humble souls : 
Thrice happy he, O Lord of hosts, 
Whose spirit trusts alone in Thee.'' 

As the end of life drew nigh, he said, " Lord, save me ! On 
Thee, my Lord, on Thee, I depend." And just as life was 
ebbing out, he whispered to Mrs Agar, " My dear, I am going 

to claim — to claim " when his voice faltered, and she added, 

" Your mansion in the skies." He replied, " Oh yes." Thus did 
he sleep in Jesus, and go to be "for ever with the Lord." 

Hymn 542. — " Lord and God of heavenly powers." — u Therefore 
with angels, and archangel" &c. 

Charles Wesley's paraphrase of that part of the communion 
service of the Church of England commencing, " Therefore 
with angels and archangel," &c. It appears in u Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1739. The word archangel, both in the title 
and text of this hymn, should be printed in the singular number, 
as we read of but one archangel, Michael, in heaven. This 
error is also perpetuated in the Book of Common Prayer. 

Hymn 543.—-" Being of Beings, God of Love Grace after 

Meat. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
P a £ e 35- It breathes a spirit of grateful adoring love, but some 
of its expressions are not suited for indiscriminate use. 

Hymn 544—" The Lord of Sabbath let us praise."— On the 
Sabbath-Day. 

Was written by Samuel Wesley, jun., and appears in his 
"Poems on Several Occasions," 1735; also in John Wesley's 
"Collection of Sacred Poems," vol. iii., page 178. It will be 
found in the author's works, 1862, page 364. It is a hymn of 
great excellence : the energy of the thoughts and expressions is 



276 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 544. 



equal to that found in the hymns of his two brothers. The 
concluding couplet is particularly comprehensive and fine — 
" 'Twas great to speak a world from nought ; 
'Twas greater to redeem ! " 

The mother of Dr Jobson received the first convictions of sin 
in her own heart by examining the ten commandments, with 
her father, as a preparation for her first communion at the 
Lord's Supper, in the cathedral, Lincoln. Attending that ser- 
vice, with a heart softened by self-examination, and especially 
whilst partaking of the memorials of the Lord's passion, she 
experienced that bruisedness of spirit which can only be appre- 
hended by a sincere penitent. From the table of the Lord she 
went home with a broken and contrite heart to her closet ; and 
there, whilst repeating the hymn commencing — 
" Behold the Saviour of mankind, 

Nailed to the shameful tree ; 
How vast the love that Him inclined 

To bleed and die for me," 
she was enabled to appropriate by faith to her own case the 
merits of the death of Christ, and her soul rose into the light 
and liberty of the children of God. When she became 
acquainted with the nature and design of Methodist class- 
meetings, she at once became a member of Society, and soon 
after the leader of a class. The joyous nature of her religion 
led many to court her company and counsel ; and with rich and 
poor alike she was faithful in discharging her duty towards their 
souls and towards her Saviour. When she visited London, the 
prevailing wickedness almost overpowered her sensitive spirit : 
she yearned over perishing sinners, and prayed earnestly for 
their salvation. She spent much time in faithful pleading with 
God, and her life was one of great peace, usefulness, and activity 
in all its duties. Several months' illness preceded her death, 
but her acceptance with God, and her hope of heaven, were 
clear and firm. On Friday, the day on which she exchanged 
mortality for life, which she thought was the Sabbath, she 
exclaimed, "What a beautiful Sunday morning is this!" and 
immediately commenced singing — 

" The Lord of Sabbath let us praise, 

In concert with the blest, 
Who, joyful, in harmonious lays 

Employ an endless rest." 



Hy. 550.] 



and its Associations. 



277 



Shortly her speech failed, and her spirit left the tenement of 
clay to mingle with those around the throne of God. 

Hymn 545. — " O Thou eternal Victim, slain." — A Memorial of 
the Death of Christ. 
This forms No. 5 of Charles Wesley's " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper," 1745. The full title is, "The Lord's Supper as it is a 
memorial of the sufferings and death of Christ." The sacra- 
mental hymns of Charles Wesley are, to a large extent, based on 
the sentiments recorded by Dr Brevint in his treatise on that 
subject, which is usually prefixed to the hymns. A thoughtful 
reader of both will readily discover the sentiments both of Dr 
Brevint and Thomas a Kempis ; but these are embellished by 
Charles Wesley with all the charm of sacred poetry. 

Hymn 546. — " Come, all who truly bear."— A Memorial of the 
Death of Christ. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 13 of " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper," 1745. 

Hymn 547. — " Come, Thou everlasting Spirit." — A Memorial of 
the Death of Christ. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 16 of " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." 

Hymn 548.—" Lamb of God, whose bleeding Love."— A Memo- 
rial of the Death of Christ 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 20 of " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." 

Hymn 549. — "Jesu, at whose supreme command. — Before the 
Sacrament. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 28. Line 3 of the second verse is altered from " Affix 
the sacramental seal." The original is printed in eight four- 
line stanzas. It also forms No. 30 in the same author's " Hymns 
on the Lord's Supper," 1745. 

Hymn 550—" Come, Holy Ghost,Thine influence shed."— The 
Sacrament as it is a sign and means of grace. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 72 of " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." 



278 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 552. 



Hymn 551. — " Victim Divine, Thy grace we claim." — The holy 
Eucharist as it implies a Sacrifice. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 116 of" Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." Dr Brevint's remarks on page 15 of his essay, furnish 
the thoughts on which this hymn is founded. 

Hymn 552. — "Jesus drinks the bitter cup." — A Memorial of 
the Death of Christ. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 21 of " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper/' 1745. The original has nine stanzas, the first three of 
which are left out. The omitted verses form Hymn 621, com- 
mencing, " God of unexampled grace." In this hymn, the poet 
notices, in bold and striking language, the signs and wonders 
accompanying the death of Christ : the phraseology is compre- 
hensive, solemn, and sublime. In the second verse of this hymn 
the poet alludes to a rumour recorded by Plutarch, that in the 
reign of Tiberius, who was Emperor of Rome at the time of the 
crucifixion of Jesus, an extraordinary voice was heard near some 
islands in the Ionian Sea, which exclaimed, " The great Pan is 
dead." The augurs were consulted by the Emperor, but they 
could not explain the meaning of the supernatural voice. The 
fact of the rumour being on record is remarkable. The heathens 
regarded the god Pan as the source of fecundity, and as the prin- 
ciple or origin of all things. What they in ignorance attributed 
to Pan belonged really and truly to the Lord Jesus Christ. 
Hence our Christian poet sings, in verse two — 

" Dies the glorious cause of all ! 
The true eternal Pan 
Falls, to raise us from our fall, 
To ransom sinful man." 

What is here applied by the poet from heathendom to the death 
of the Saviour is by Milton applied to his birth in his u Hymn 
for the Morning of Christ's Nativity," where the poet says — 

" The shepherds on the lawn, 

Or e'er the point of dawn, 
Sat simply chatting in a rustic row ; 

Full little thought they then 

That the mighty Pan 
Was kindly come to live with them below." 



Hy. 555-3 



and its Associations. 



279 



The Rev. Samuel Wesley, rector of Epworth, in his exquisite 
devotional piece, entitled, " Eupolis' Hymn to the Creator," pub- 
lished in several of the Wesley volumes, alludes in like manner 
to the name and power of this great heathen deity, thus — 

" Thy herbage, O great Pan, sustains 
The flocks that graze our Attic plains. " 

Hymn 553.—" He dies ! the Friend of sinners dies ! " — Christ 's 
dying, rising, a)id reigning. 

Dr Watts', from " Horae Lyricas, 1705. 

This hymn is as much improved by John Wesley's judicious 
alterations as is the same author's version of the Hundredth 
Psalm. Dr Watts wrote thus — 

" Pie dies ! The heavenly Lover dies ! 
The tidings strike a doleful sound 
On my poor heart-strings : deep he lies 
In the cold caverns of the ground." 

We need not stay to point out the weakness of this : let John 
Wesley's amended lines make their own appeal — 

" He dies ! the Friend of sinners dies ! 
Lo ! Salem's daughters weep around ! 
A solemn darkness veils the skies, 
A sudden trembling shakes the ground." 

In Mr Wesley's a Select Hymns for the Use of Christians of all 
Denominations," he has printed this hymn in its unaltered form ; 
thus showing that he took special pains in preparing the Hymn- 
book designed " For the Use of the People called Methodists." 

Hymn 554. — " Our Lord is risen from the dead." — On the Ascen- 
sion of Christ. 

Charles Wesley's version of Psalm xxiv. 7-10, found in the 
enlarged edition of " Psalms and Hymns," 1743. 

Hymn 555. — " Come, Desire of nations, come!" — Written on 
the Earthquake in London, 1750. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns occasioned by the Earth- 
quake, March 8, 1750," Part II., No. 13. 
When all London was in a state of violent consternation, the 



280 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 556. 



inhabitants fleeing into the open country, foolishly thinking the 
earthquake might not there reach them, and supposing that the 
apparent threatenings of the Almighty were against the build- 
ings and not against the citizens of London, multitudes giving 
up everything from fear, and crowding round the Wesleys and 
Whitefield in their homes, at the Foundery, and in Hyde Park, 
Moorfields, and Kennington, then, and under such exciting 
circumstances, the faith of Charles Wesley was manifested by 
his writing and printing immediately such hymns as this — 

" Come, Desire of nations, come ! 
Hasten, Lord, the general doom ! " 

Thus the faith of the Christian poet enabled him to pray for that 
which the affrighted unbelieving worldlings so much dreaded ! 
This hymn is also printed in Mr Wesley's " Select Hymns, with 
Tunes annext," 1761 ; and in the " Sacred Melody" it has the 
tune " Plymouth 99 affixed. 

Hymn 556.—" To the hills I lift mine eyes."— Psalm cxxi. 

Charles Wesley's paraphrase of Psalm cxxi., &o, found in the 
enlarged edition of " Psalms and Hymns," 1743. This is placed 
under the title, " On Miscellaneous Subjects." 

Methodism has flourished in Yorkshire with scarcely any 
exception or interruption. Against much opposition Hugh 
Gill, of Weeton, Otley, joined the Methodist Society, through 
the preaching of Richard Burdsall and his contemporaries, and 
soon afterwards he became a local preacher and often travelled 
long journeys, to proclaim the salvation which he himself 
had found. He and his son, who also was a local preacher, so 
thoroughly canvassed the village on behalf of the mission cause, 
that they collected nearly two shillings annually for every resi- 
dent therein ; and the greatest delight of Mr Gill's family was 
to have the house full of guests at the missionary anniversary, 
and to give each a thoroughly Yorkshire welcome. When 
seventy-four summers had passed over his head, during fifty of 
which he had acted as a local preacher, he was as much attached 
to the means of grace as ever. On Good Friday, 1827, he 
attended a prayer-meeting, and poured out his soul before God 
with much earnestness and power. On Easter Sunday he met 
his class in the morning, and gave out the hymn — 



HY. 559.] 



and its Associations. 



281 



"To the hills I lift mine eyes, 
The everlasting hills ; 
Streaming thence, in fresh supplies, 
My soul the Spirit feels." 

He was taken ill while singing, yet he afterwards tried to pray. 
His voice began to falter, articulation became difficult, and in a 
few days his happy spirit escaped to the land of rest, as he 
whispered, " I feel Jesus precious — very precious." 

Sarah Haldom feared the Lord from her youth ; and after 
being more than fifty years a consistent member of the Metho- 
dist Society, she died in great peace at Newington Green, Lon- 
don, with an unshaken reliance on the Saviour. During her 
long and severe illness, she often repeated the verse— 

" To the hills I lift mine eyes, 

The everlasting hills ; 
Streaming thence, in fresh supplies, 

My soul the Spirit feels : 
Will He not the help afford ? 

Help, while yet I ask, is given ! " 

Hymn 557.—" Ye servants of God, Your Master proclaim."— -To 
be Sung in a Tumult. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for the Times of Trouble 
and Persecution," 1744, page 43. The third verse of the original 
is left out, and the last verse is taken from Charles Wesley's 
" Funeral Hymns," page 24, where it is the fifth. 

Hymn 558. — " Come, Lord, from above, The mountains remove." 
— For those that seek Redemption. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns for those that seek Redemp- 
tion," 1747. It contains a lively and instructive presentation of 
the plan of salvation. The marrow of the gospel scheme is 
embodied in this couplet — 

'* Who on Jesus believes, Without money or price, 
The pearl of forgiveness and holiness buys. " 

Hymn 559. — " God moves in a mysterious way." — Light Shin- 
ing in Darkness. 

William Cowper's, from " Olney Hymns," No. 15, Book III * 
1779- 



282 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 559. 



In instances innumerable this hymn has been a source of 
encouragement and consolation to the tried, afflicted, and dis- 
tressed followers of the Redeemer. The title is " Light Shining 
out of Darkness." What that darkness was, a brief glance at 
the history of the author and the hymn will sufficiently explain. 
Partly from pecuniary difficulty, and partly from deep remorse 
on account of sin, Cowper had to be placed under the care of 
Dr Cotton as a lunatic. Ultimately he so far recovered as to 
be removed from the asylum, and allowed the liberty of free 
action. Even then he was occasionally so much depressed as 
to be a source of anxiety to those around him. In one of these 
attacks of mental derangement he unhappily believed that the 
divine will was that he should drown himself in a particular 
part of the River Thames at London. He one evening, in his 
thirty-second year, called for a post-chaise, and ordered the 
driver to take him to the Tower Wharf, intending, as he 
records, "to throw myself into the river from the Custom- 
house Quay. I left the coach upon the Tower Wharf, intending 
never to return to it. But I found the water low, and a porter 
seated on some goods as if on purpose to prevent me. This 
passage to the bottomless pit being mercifully shut against me, 
I returned to the coach, and ordered the man to drive me back 
to the Temple." Thus the snare was broken. Cowper escaped 
the temptation, and immediately he sat down and wrote the 
hymn, which indeed speaks of " light shining out of dark- 
ness," which has ministered comfort to thousands, and will yet 
afford consolation to thousands of others for many generations 
to come. James Montgomery says of this hymn that it "is a 
lyric of high tone and character, and rendered awfully interest- 
ing by the circumstances under which it was written — in the 
twilight of returning reason." 

The late Rev. Hugh Stowell, of Manchester, at a public meet- 
ing, related an incident which very touchingly illustrates this 
hymn of Cowper' s. One of the Lancashire mill-owners, who 
had struggled long to keep his hands employed during the cotton 
famine arising from the American war, 1865, at last found it 
impossible to proceed, and, calling his workpeople together, told 
them that he should be compelled, after the usual notice, to close 
his mills. The new r s was received with sadness and sympathy ; 
to them it meant privation and suffering, to him it might be 
ruin. None cared to speak in reply ; when suddenly arose the 



Hy. 560.] and its Associations. 



283 



voice of song from one of the girls, who was a Sunday-school 
teacher, and who, feeling it to be an occasion requiring divine 
help and guidance, gave out the verse of Cowper's hymn — 

" Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take, 
The clouds ye so much dread 
Are big with mercy, and shall break 
In blessings on your head." 

All the mill-hands joined in singing the verse amidst deep 
emotion. 

Few persons have had a better parentage, a better training, 
better companions, or a better end of life than the Rev. Joseph 
Entwisle the second. When a scholar at Kingswood School, 
at the age of ten, he became the subject of saving grace, and 
maintained his piety throughout a long life. At the age of 
twenty-five he was received into the Wesleyan ministry, having 
been preceded by a father, of the same name, one of the most 
handsome, holy, useful, and venerable of men. The son, like 
his sire, carried his religion into everything, and lived as one 
who had habitual communion with God. In 1864 he was 
travelling in the Yeadon circuit, and one Thursday evening he 
was preaching at Moorside. He had just given out the second 
cwo lines of the first hymn for the service — ■ 

" God moves in a mysterious way," &c., 

and whilst the congregation was singing the fourth line of the 
verse — 

" And rides upon the storm," 

the preacher quietly sank down in the pulpit, and in a few 
moments his meek and quiet spirit passed away, to be for 
ever with Him " who rides upon the storm," who is " His own 
interpreter," and who will in His own good time make all such 
dispensations " plain." 

Hymn 560. — " Lord, dismiss us with Thy blessing." — A Bene- 

diction. 

This is believed to have been written (1793) by the Rev. 
Edwin Smythe, formerly of Dublin, afterwards of Bath and 
Bristol, and who was associated with the Wesleys in their 
labours at the close of the last century. Mr Smythe was 
nephew to the Archbishop of Dublin in 1777. The widow of 
Mr Smythe was known to several Methodists during the present 



284 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 560. 



century. A sister of the Archbishop had twenty-seven chil- 
dren, and one of her grandchildren was the wife of the Rev. 
Dr Morison, of China. This hymn must not be confused with 
another which commences with the same first line, which was 
written by the Rev. Walter Shirley in 1774, but which is in three 
stanzas. 



THE SUPPLEMENT. 

Those to whom the affairs of Methodism were intrusted — 
namely, the " Legal Hundred" — during the quarter of a century 
following the death of its founder, found sufficient occupation 
in cayrying on, consolidating, and extending the work of preach- 
ing the gospel, and the duties resulting therefrom ; hence 
several minor matters, as they were then thought to be, which 
have since occupied a large share of the attention of the Con- 
nexion, were left in abeyance for u a more convenient season." 
One of these matters was the extension of the Collection of 
Hymns used by the body. When the Hymn-book proper, with 
the twenty-one additional hymns ? was finally agreed upon, 
selfish, and sometimes merciless printers in the country invaded 
the rights of che Book Committee, by bringing and pushing 
into the market cheap, unauthorised, and often very inaccurate 
editions of that work, to the injury of the funds of Methodism, 
and not much to the credit of any one else. This question 
often came before the Book Committee in London ; and ulti- 
mately, in 1829, or thereabouts, the desire for an increased 
variety of hymns was urged with so much reason and force by 
many of the preachers and Societies, that it was resolved to add 
a Supplement to the Collection, and the preparation of that 
work was intrusted to the editor (at that time the Rev. Thomas 
Jackson), the Rev. Richard Watson, and the Rev. W. M. 
Bunting. This addition of 209 hymns was published at the end 
of the year 1830, at first in a separate form, so as to place it 
within easy reach of the members of the Society and congrega- 
tions, and after a year or two it was regularly bound up as part 
of the authorised Collection, in which form alone it has since 
been sold. The frequency with which the hymns in this part 
of the book have been given out from that time to the pre- 



Hy. 561.] 



and its Associations. 



285 



sent, is the best possible evidence that the addition thus made 
was required by the Societies, and really appreciated by them. 

The following short preface will explain what further may be 
required to be known as the reason for making such an addition. 

"The following Supplement is designed to furnish a greater number 
of hymns suitable for public worship, for festivals, and for occasional 
services, than are found in that invaluable Collection, in common use, 
which the piety and genius of the Wesleys bequeathed to the societies 
raised up by their ministry. It is compiled chiefly from the festival 
and other hymns which Mr Charles Wesley published in separate 
pamphlets, and from his unpublished poetry, which, by purchase from 
his heir, along with other papers, has lately become the property of the 
Connexion. To these some hymns have been added from other authors, 
chiefly from Dr Watts ; and a few which, though they sink below the 
rank of the Wesley poetry, are inserted because of some excellence 
which will be found in the sentiment, and the greater choice of subjects 
which they afford. Most of the hymns of this class, however, were 
inserted in the * Morning Hymn-Book,' prepared by Mr Wesley for 
the London congregations, or in a smaller Collection published by him ; 
and so had his sanction. A few others have been introduced because 
of their popular character, and their being favourites with many of our 
people. Limited as this Supplement is, it will render our congrega- 
tions more familiar than they have ever been with some noble hymns 
of Mr Charles Wesley, only to be found in Collections which are in the 
hands of comparatively few persons ; whilst it brings into use, for the 
first time, a number of his compositions not inferior to those which he 
himself published. The Preachers will here find hymns adapted to 
various subjects on which they address the people ; and our fine occa- 
sional hymns, which were seldom used, because not in the hands of the 
congregations generally, will be ready for festival occasions ; and will 
be found in many instances adapted also, at least in some of their 
stanzas, to general use. As several of the hymns in this Collection are 
selected from the papers of Mr Charles Wesley above referred to, and 
have not before been published, a copyright is established in this Sup- 
plement, and all pirated editions are rendered liable to legal process. 
To guard against such attempts to turn to private profit what is sacredly 
applied to the support of the work of God, this Collection has been 
regularly entered at Stationers'-Hall. — London, Nov. 9, 1830." 

Hymn 561. — " Hail, Father, whose creating call." — A Hymn 
to God the Father. 

This was written by Samuel Wesley, jun., and forms the first 



286 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 563. 



hymn in his volume of "Poems on Several Occasions/' 1736, 
second edition 1743, and reprinted in 1862, page 365. 

There are three of these hymns, the second being addressed 
to God the Son, which commences the second section of the 
Supplement, No. 601 ; and the third addressed to God the Holy 
Spirit, which commences the third section, Hymn 649. These 
were not printed in the original quarto edition of Mr Samuel 
Wesley's poems, published in 1736, but in the second and 
enlarged edition, i2mo, 1743, with a portrait, the finest which 
has ever appeared of the author. Samuel Wesley, the elder 
brother of John and Charles, was born in London, February 10, 
1690. As a child he showed a taste for poetry. He was edu- 
cated at Westminster School and Christ Church, Oxford, whence 
he returned, after he had taken his M.A. degree, to become one 
of the ushers of Westminster School, where he had his brothers 
for some time under his care. Whilst residing there he became 
one of the founders and principal promoters of the Westminster 
Hospital, a work of charity and benevolence in which he 
took special pleasure. After residing in Westminster cloisters 
for twenty years, he was appointed head-master of the Gram- 
mar School, Tiverton, in 1732. He there issued the first 
edition of his poems in 1736, and died in 1739, at tne early age 
of forty-nine. He was not friendly to the religious views of 
his brothers, but died before the Methodist Societies were 
really founded. There are six of his hymns in the Collection. 
The following lines originally formed the fourth verse of this 
hymn — 

"Pleased to behold Thine image bright 
With rays co-equal shine ; 
Begotten, uncreated Light, 
As infinite as Thine." 

Hymn 562. — " Hail, co-essential Three." — The Trinity in Unity. 

Charles Wesley's, from <£ Hymns on the Trinity," 1767, page 
107. 

Hymn 563. — "Great is oui redeeming Lord." — The Holy 
Church throughout all the world doth acknowledge Thee. 

Charles Wesley's version of Psalm xlviii., published by Henry 
Fish, A.M., 1854. 



Hy. 567.] 



and its Associations. 



287 



Hymns 564. — " Infinite God, to Thee we raise." 
565- — " Messiah, joy of every heart." 
„ 566.— " Saviour, we now rejoice in hope." 
Te Deum laudamus. 

Charles Wesley's, forming the first portion of his elegant 
poetical paraphrase of that sublime devotional hymn known as 
the " Te Deum." It is found in that poet's " Hymns for those 
that seek Redemption," 1747. It there appears in fourteen stan- 
zas ; but in the Hymn-book it is divided so as to make three 
hymns. There is a sublimity in the language and character of 
the Te Deu?n, which the poet has admirably caught and em- 
bodied in his masterly rendering of the same. Who, for in- 
stance, can repeat the solemn truth, "We believe that Thou 
shalt come to be our Judge," without deep emotion, or sing the 
same in the strain of the Methodist poet — 

" And Thou, with judgment clad, shalt come, 
To seal our everlasting doom." 

This paraphrase has been very generally ascribed to the poet 
Dryden, but erroneously. He has published a version of this 
fine hymn ; but it is much inferior to this one by Charles Wes- 
ley. His is in the decasyllabic verse, and commences thus — 

" Thee, sovereign God, our grateful accents praise, 
We own Thee Lord, and bless Thy wondrous ways." 

Hymn 567. — " The spacious firmament on high." — "The heavens 
declare the glory of God" &c. 

Joseph Addison's, being one of his five hymns, and thought 
to be the best of them. It is a version of the first four verses 
of Psalm xix., and was published in 171 2. It is found in the 
Spectator, No. 465, Saturday, August 23, 1712. It is a sublime 
composition ; but it is remarkable that, whilst it exhibits 
the works of God in exalted strains, the name of God or of 
Jesus Christ does not once occur in the hymn. There has 
been much controversy concerning its authorship. Partisans 
have been found to claim it for Watts, Tickell, and Marvel; 
but though the evidence of actual authorship is not so clear as 
it might be, the claim of Addison is supreme. 

Joseph Addison was born May 1, 1672, and was the son of 



288 



The Methodist Hymn- Book [Hy. 57 r. 



the rector of Milston, in Wiltshire. He was educated at Ames- 
bury, Salisbury, and the Charterhouse, where he became ac- 
quainted with Richard Steele. He afterwards graduated at 
Queen's College, Oxford, and at the age of twenty-two addressed 
some elegant verses to the veteran poet, Dryden. When only 
twenty-five, he obtained a crown pension of ^300 per annum to 
enable him to travel, for a complimentary poem on the king. 
He afterwards contributed liberally to the Tatter, Spectator, 
and Guardian, and his Saturday papers in the Spectator con- 
tained his hymns. In 17 16 he married the Countess-Dowager 
of Warwick, and in 1717 he became Secretary of State, This 
office he soon relinquished on a pension of ^1500 a-year, and 
died at Holland House, Kensington, June 17, 1719. His works 
are numerous, and possess high moral excellence as well as dis- 
tinguished literary merit. Hence there is a proverbial saying, 
" Whoever would attain to an elegant English style, must give 
his days and nights to the study of Addison." 

Hymn 568. — " God is a name my soul adores/' — The Creator 
and Creatures, 

Dr Watts', from t€ Horse Lyricas," 1705. This was inserted in 
John Wesley's " Collection of Psalms and Hymns," 1738. The 
second verse of the original is left out, and several alterations 
are made in those which are adopted. Mr Bunting has sug- 
gested as a tune for this hymn, " Webb's — very slow." 

Hymn 569. — "The Lord Jehovah reigns." — The Divine 
Perfections. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm cxlviii. It is found in John Wes- 
ley's "Psalms and Hymns," 1738, and considerably improved 
by John Wesley's alterations. 

Hymn 570.— " High in the heavens, eternal God. ,; — The 

Perfections and Providence of God. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm xxxii. 5, 6. The fifth verse is 
omitted. 

Hymn 571.— "With glory clad, with strength array'd." — 
" Holiness becometh Thine house, O Lord, for ever" 
Tate and Brady's version of Psalm cxiii., licensed in 1696. 



Hy. 576.] 



and its Associations. 



289 



Hymn 572. — "The earth and all her fulness owns." — "The earth 
is the Lora's" &c. 
Charles Wesley's version of Psalm xxiv. 1-5. It is printed in 
John Wesley's "Psalms and Hymns," enlarged, 1 741, with 
verses 6-13 omitted. 

Hymn 573. — " Come, sound His praise abroad." — A Psalm 
before a Sermon. 

Dr Watts' version of the ninety-fifth Psalm, with two verses 
left out. 

Hymn 574. — " How lovely are thy tents, O Lord !" — 
Psalm lxxxiv. 

Charles Wesley's version of Psalm lxxxiv., first printed 
in the Arminian Magazine, and also included in Mr Fish's 
collection of Charles Wesley's Psalms. The second and fifth 
verses are left out. 

Hymn 575. — " Who Jesus our Example know." — "Peter and 
John went up into the temple at the hour of prayer? 

Charles Wesley's paraphrase of Acts iii. 1. 

Hymn 576. — " My soul, inspired with sacred love." — 
Psalm cxlvi. 

Charles Wesley's paraphrase of Psalm cxlvi., with two verses 
omitted. It was printed first in the Arminian Magazine, and 
is also inserted in Mr Fish's collection of Charles Wesley's 
Psalms. There is a similarity in some of the lines to portions 
of Addison's hymn commencing " When all Thy mercies, O my 
God" (Hymn 592). 

Under the ministry of the Rev. Joseph Hollingworth, at Bar- 
wick and Yarm, John Mowbray Pearson was convinced of sin ; 
and whilst attending a prayer-meeting in the Wesleyan Chapel, 
Yarm, he believed on Christ, and obtained the blessing of pardon 
and the spirit of adoption, when in his seventeenth year. He 
soon became a prayer-leader and local preacher, and in 1832 
was received into the itinerant ministry, covenanting with God 
to use every opportunity for improvement in the Church and in 
bringing glory to God. Illness set in, which cut short his 
career of usefulness ; but at the commencement of it he had the 

T 



290 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 578. 



clearest assurance of his acceptance with God. A short time 
before his death, he requested a friend to read to him Hymn 
576, commencing — 

" My soul, inspired with sacred love, 

The Lord thy God delight to praise ; 
His gifts I will for Him improve, 

To Him devote my happy days ; 
To Him my thanks and praises give, 
And only for His glory live." 

Clasping his hands, he exclaimed, "Thank God, this hymn 
contains my experience, my principles, and my determination." 
When the sweat of death was on his brow, waving his hand in 
token of victory, he said, with his expiring breath, u Come, Lord 
Jesus, come quickly and he fell asleep in Jesus. 

Hymn 577.—" Great God, attend, while Sion sings." — God and 
His Church ; or, Grace and Glory. 

Dr Watts' version of the eighty-fourth Psalm, 17 19. 

Hymn 578. — €t Sweet is the work, my God, my King." — A Psalm 
for the Lord's Day, 

Dr Watts' version of the ninety-first Psalm, Part I., 17 19, the 
sixth verse left out. 

In early life, Mr George Nott, brother of General Sir W. Nott, 
G.C.B., had a strong bias towards the Christian ministry, but 
circumstances did not favour his object ; yet his highly cultivated 
mind and powerful intellect were occasionally exercised as a local 
preacher in Methodism, to which Society he belonged for 
nearly fifty years. As a class-leader, he greatly excelled, owing 
to his deep spiritual experience, his accurate acquaintance with 
Scripture, and his remarkably retentive memory. He loved 
prayer, and was regular at the weekly prayer-meeting. In re- 
tirement, during his last illness, when laid aside by paralysis, he 
delighted to converse on the heavenly state ; and the mention 
of its nearness and blessedness would at once awaken strong 
feelings of attachment to the better land, which he would give 
expression to in some favourite stanza. Often did he break out 
in this strain — 

" Then shall I see, and hear, and know, 
All I desired and wished below \ 



Hy. 580.] and its Associations. 



291 



And every power find sweet employ 
In that eternal world of joy." 

Full of such expectations, he passed away from his earthly home 
at Carmarthen to his everlasting one in heaven. 

Hymn 579. — " Great is the Lord our God." — The Church is the 
Honour and Safety of a Nation. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm xlviii., verses 1-8, Part I., with 
three verses of the original left out. 

In one of the omitted stanzas the poet has shown most con- 
vincingly how the power of the Almighty is the defence of any 
nation that trusts in Him — 

" When navies, tall and proud, 
Attempt to spoil our peace, 
He sends His tempests, roaming round, 
And sinks them in the seas. " 
Similar in sentiment is that line of Charles Wesley's in which 
he prays for the defeat of the French navy : when that nation 
was seeking to invade England, Charles Wesley's prayer for the 
intruding invaders was very pointed — 

" Sink them in the Channel, Lord." 

Hymn 580.—" Great God, this hallow'd day of Thine." — Hymn 
for the Lord's Day Morning, 

Written by Miss Ann Steele, under the signature of " Theo- 
dosia." It appears in the third volume of her " Miscellaneous 
Pieces, in Verse and Prose," 1760, page 138. The third and 
fourth verses are left out. 

She was the daughter of the Rev. William Steele, Baptist 
minister, Broughton, Hants, and was born in 1716. She was a 
member of her father's church ; and wrote a number of hymns 
and poems, full of scriptural teaching, breathing a pious spirit. 
They have a wide and deservedly high reputation. A few hours 
before the time fixed for her marriage, the young man was 
drowned, and this sad accident, and her own delicate frame, 
made her a great sufferer through life. She died at Broughton 
in 1778, aged sixty-one, and was buried in the churchyard there. 

The original hymn has four verses, the first and second only 
being given. In the first line, " sacred" is changed for " hal- 



292 



The Methodist Hymn-Book. 



[HY. 581. 



lowed " day of Thine ; and the fourth line reads, " These solemn, 
these devoted hours " Neither of these alterations are improve- 
ments. The Rev. W. M. Bunting has added the following verse 
to his copy of this hymn, under date of " May 7, '65, 8 A.M." 
" And let Thy mercy lighten, Lord, 

On all who thus look up to Thee ; 
Distil the comfort of Thy Word 

Like dew from heaven, my God, on ME. 
So be both sanctified and blest 
To me, to all, this day of rest. " 

Hymn 581.— "Welcome, sweet day of rest."-— The Lord's Day. 

Dr Watts', from Book II., Hymn 14, 1709. 

In conversion and on death-beds this hymn has been made a 
blessing to many. John Watson, of Baildon, Yorkshire, was 
apprenticed to a cloth-worker at the age of nine years, to remain 
till he was twenty. During that time he was allowed one shil- 
ling per year for pocket-money. This sum he preserved for five 
years, and, after much reasoning, he purchased a Bible and Dr 
Watts' Hymn-Book with his five shillings. He was much elated 
with his bargain, although he could not read them. He had 
regularly attended the Baptist Chapel at Rawdon, but had 
realised nothing beyond serious impressions. It was the prac- 
tice of the family with whom he resided often to read the Scrip- 
tures, and to sing hymns; and on one of these occasions, whilst 
repeating the verse — 

" One day amidst the place 

Where my dear Lord has been, 
Is better than ten thousand days 
Of pleasurable sin," 
he felt unutterable joy. He withdrew, and took a walk into the 
fields, where his peace in communing with God was overflowing. 
He was impressed to go and hear the Methodists, which he did 
on the following Sunday : he joined the Society, and remained 
a faithful and consistent member for sixty years, a class-leader 
for fifty years, and, at the age of eighty, died in great peace, say- 
ing, " Christ is precious ; He is precious indeed." 

So few were the privileges of the Gospel in some parts of 
England seventy years ago, that in order to attend the preach- 
ing of the Methodists, in which his soul felt comfort and satis- 
faction, John Dixon, of Bassingham, had to go to Newark, nine 



Hy. 582.] 



and its Associations. 



293 



miles, to hear a sermon on the Sabbath morning, and to Retford, 
twenty miles, to hear another sermon on the Sabbath evening. 
In 1 801, the Rev. John Hickling was invited to preach in Mr 
Dixon's house, and from that time a society was formed in the 
village, which has been made a blessing to many souls. He had 
a delicate frame, and suffered much during his short life, but he 
found constant consolation in religion. When the last summons 
came, he was asked what he thought of religion and of Method- 
ism. He spoke in the most exalted terms of religion, and added, 
in reply to the other question, " Defend Methodism, for it is of 
God ; particularly the great doctrines of the witness of the Spirit, 
and Christian perfection. 9 He thought highly of Watts' Hymns, 
and often quoted from them. His last utterances were — 
" Precious, precious Jesus," 

" My soul would ever stay 
In such a frame as this, 

And sit and sing herself away 
To everlasting bliss. " 
Almost immediately his released spirit entered the port of heaven 
in the triumph of faith. 

Hymn 582.—" Lord of the Sabbath, hear our vows"— The 
Eternal Sabbath. 

This is Dr Doddridge's hymn, written to illustrate the text, 
Heb. iv. 9, with the date January 2, 1736-7, in the authors MS. 

Dr Doddridge wrote his hymns to be sung after the sermons 
which he preached, and adapted them specially to the texts which 
he selected. He died in Lisbon in 175 1, aged forty-nine years- 
His hymns were published in 1755 by his friend Job Orton. 

Philip Doddridge, born in London in 1702, was the son of an 
oilman. He received a good education, one of his tutors being 
the excellent Samuel Clark, author of "Scripture Promises." He 
joined the Dissenters, and became one of their ministers, although 
the Duchess of Bedford offered to maintain him at Cambridge 
if he remained in the Church. At the early age of twenty- 
seven, entreated by his friend Dr Watts, he opened an academy 
— a school of the prophets — for the education of young men 
for the ministry. In 1730, he removed to Northampton, 
where his theological college was carried on to the time of 
his death (from consumption) in 175 1. Some two hundred 
students were educated by him, one hundred and fifty of whom 



294 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [H Y. 582. 



entered the ministry. Here he wrote his numerous works, was 
the minister at the Castle Hill Meeting-house, and became one 
of the founders of the Book Society for providing good and cheap 
books for the poor. Lady Frances Gardiner, wife of Colonel 
Gardiner, urged Doddridge to publish his hymns, but he had 
been dead four years before they appeared. They are three 
hundred and sixty-four in number, to which some others were 
added in another volume of hymns, published in 1838, by John 
Doddridge Humphryes. Montgomery says of Doddridge's 
Hymns : — " They shine in the beauty of holiness ; and, like the 
saints, they are lovely and acceptable for fervid, unaffected love 
to God, His service, and His people." 

The words of Hagar, " Thou, God, seest me," so rested upon 
the mind of Anne Hamer in early life, that she was constrained 
to forsake worldly pleasures ; and at the age of sixteen, during 
the progress of a revival in Shropshire, she found the Lord, to 
the joy of her heart. Her life ever afterwards was devoted to 
the service of God ; in the Sabbath-school, and as a missionary 
collector, she was remarkably useful. Her last illness was brief, 
but her peace and joy were unshaken. When the midnight pre- 
ceding her departure was passed, she was reminded that the 
Sabbath had commenced. She immediately replied — 
" Thine earthly Sabbaths, Lord, we love ; 
But there 's a nobler rest above ; 
To that our lab'ring souls aspire, 
With ardent pangs of strong desire." 
Adding, " I shall soon be before the throne of God and the Lamb : 
I shall hunger no more, neither thirst any more : the Lamb shall 
lead me to fountains of living waters, and God shall wipe away 
all tears from my eyes." In this ecstasy of joy and praise she 
continued for some time ; then, turning to her husband, repeated, 
" Farewell ! and let me languish into life and so she passed 
away. 

Dr Doddridge's description of heaven in this hymn would 
scarcely be appreciated by Christians dwelling in an Eastern 
clime, where the "sun-cloud" and "midnight-shade" are the 
very paradise of life's enjoyment. A noble missionary, who 
spent thirty years in Jamaica and Old Calabar, remarks : — " One 
who knows what it is to be exposed to the sun of the torrid zone 
shudders to read the dreadful lines in a hymn by Dr Doddridge, 
describing heaven : — 



Hv. 583.] 



and its Associations. 



295 



■ No midnight shade, no clouded sun. 
But sacred, high, eternal noon.' 

The idea is intolerable. It terrifies one to think of it. The man 
who wrote that line must have lived far north, where a glimpse 
of the sun was a rare favour, and his highest enjoyment to bask 
in its rays a live-long summer's day. I met once in Jamaica 
with a black boy, under the shade of some cocoa-nut trees, where 
we both had taken shelter from the glare of the meridian sun 
and the dazzle of the sea-side sandy road. I said, * Well, my 
boy, did you ever hear of heaven ?' ' Me hear, massa.' ' And 
what sort of place do you think it will be V 1 Massa, it must be 
very cool place.' That boy knows more of the Bible on that 
subject than some hymn-writers." 

Hymn 583. — "Again our weekly labours end." — On the Sabbath. 

This is part of a hymn of fourteen stanzas, originally written 
by Joseph Stennett, and published in 1732. It has been so 
altered by some one, that, as it appears in the Methodist collec- 
tion, only the last five lines are copied in their integrity. Sten* 
nett's hymn has many admirers, and is found in other collections 
unaltered. The first verse reads thus : — 

" Another six days* work is done, 
Another Sabbath is begun ; 
Return, my soul, unto thy rest : 
Revere the day thy God has blest." 

The Rev. W. M. Bunting has added this note : " For other good 
Sabbath-morning hymns, see 647, 652, 654, 664, and 698." 

The author of this hymn, the Rev. Joseph Stennett, D.D., was 
born at Abingdon, Berks, in 1663, an d under his father's minis- 
try was converted in early life. His education embraced every 
branch of knowledge then taught. After he became the pastor 
at Devonshire Square Chapel, he ministered to a congregation 
of Seventh-day Baptists ; but he also preached to other congre- 
gations on the first day. He also trained young men for the 
ministry. He was the author of " Hymns for the Lord's Supper," 
1697; "A Version of Solomon's Song," 1700, and twelve 
"Hymns on Believers' Baptism," 1712. He also published a 
commendatory poem on the Rev. Samuel Wesley's " Ingenious 
Poem entitled The Life of Christ," &c., 1693. He died in 1713. 
His collected works, hymns, poems, sermons, letters, and life, 



296 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 588. 



appeared, in four volumes, in 1732. This hymn is found in a 
dozen collections. 

Hymn 584.—" O render thanks to God above. "—"His mercy 
endure th for ever." 

Tate or Brady's version of Psalm cvi. 1-6. The original is in 
forty-eight stanzas, five only of which are selected. The last 
line is altered from 

" Sing loud aniens, praise ye the Lord." 

Hymn 585. — " Far as creation's bounds extend." — The Goodness 
of God Acknowledged. 

James Merrick's paraphrase of part of Psalm cxlv., and first 
published in 1765. Only a small portion of the original is given. 

James Merrick, A.M., was born in 1720, and was educated for 
the ministry at Trinity College, Oxford ; but his health failing 
him, he was not ordained. He translated or paraphrased the 
Psalms in English verse, and published the work in 1765, but 
it failed to secure royal favour, so rests simply on its intrinsic 
merits. Dr W. B. Collyer thought so highly of Merrick's ver- 
sion, that he included over fifty of his psalms and hymns in his 
collection. He died at Reading, in January 1 769, aged fifty years. 

Hymn 586.—" Eternal depth of love divine."—" God with us? 

John Wesley's translation from the German of Count Zinzen- 
dorf. It is found in " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a g e 
195. The original is in four double stanzas, the last of which is 
omitted. 

Hymn 587. — " Let every tongue Thy goodness speak." — Mercy 
to Sufferers. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm cxlv. 14-17. The fourth verse is 
left out, and the third altered. 

Hymn 588.—" This, this is the God we adore."— God our Trust 
Joseph Hart's, from " Hymns Composed on Various Occa- 
sions," 1759. The original consists of seven stanzas, the last 
only of which is here given. It forms No. 73 in the author's 
own book, the first line being — 

" No prophet or dreamer of dreams." 
Joseph Hart was born in London in 171 2. In early life he 



Hy. 588.] and its Associations. 297 



attended WhitefiekTs Tabernacle, Moorfields. He was a sound 
classical scholar, and became a teacher of languages. He was 
converted under the preaching of Whitefield, and himself be- 
came a preacher. The Rev. J. Towers, of Barbican Chapel, 
describes his preaching and hymns as " a treasury of practical, 
doctrinal, and experimental divinity." He died in London, 
May 24, 1768, and is interred in Bunhill Fields. One of his 
sons became a barrister and Lord High Chancellor of Ireland, 
although the father left his family in destitute circumstances 
when he died. There is scarcely a verse in the Hymn-book 
which has met with more acceptance, or which has been more 
frequently repeated on death-beds, than this one of Mr Hart's. 
We have only space for three brief notices. 

The mother of the Rev. Samuel Lucas was first convinced of 
sin under the ministry of the Rev. J. A. James, and found peace 
through believing on Jesus from attending the preaching of the 
Methodists in Birmingham. For twenty years she held fast 
her faith in God. During a long affliction she was preserved in 
patience and resignation. Nearly her last words were expres- 
sive of her confidence and thankfulness, and were in the lines 
of Hart's hymn, which she had often sung in health — 

" 'Tis Jesus, the first and the last, 

Whose Spirit shall guide me safe home ; 
I '11 praise Him for all that is past, 

And trust Him for all that's to come." 

Soon afterwards she fell asleep in Jesus. 

In early life the Rev. Daniel West was brought to a saving 
knowledge of the truth mainly through the instrumentality of the 
Rev. John M'Lean. He soon became a useful local preacher, was 
admitted into the Methodist ministry, and left blessed fruit of 
his labours in the circuits in which he travelled. At the request 
of Conference, he went to visit the mission-stations on the Gold 
Coast of Africa, and there his work was cut short in righteous- 
ness. He was taken suddenly ill at the Gambia. The night 
before he died he said to a missionary, " I have never forsaken 
God, and He has not forsaken me." With his fast-departing 
breath he repeated the lines — 

" 'Tis Jesus, the first and the last, 

Whose Spirit shall guide me safe home 

and then entered on his eternal rest. 



298 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 589. 



The mother of the Rev. Dr Jobson was made instrumental in 
bringing her brother, Mr James Caborn, of Beverley, to a know- 
ledge of the truth through faith in Jesus Christ. He was forty- 
nine when this happy change took place, and for thirty-six years 
afterwards he adorned the doctrine which he so ardently believed, 
devoting his mind, his energies, and his substance to the fur- 
therance of the gospel, and in helping the neglected and poor. 
His testimony to the inward witness of the Spirit was clear, and 
his joy in the Holy Ghost often abounded. In his last illness 
he was staying with Dr Jobson at Bradford. He expressed his 
confidence in God in numerous verses from the Scriptures and 
the Hymn-book, at intervals of his severe sufferings, and up to 
the end of his earthly pilgrimage of eighty-five years, he spoke 
to himself in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs. His last 
quotation was from Hymn 588 : — 

' 1 This, this is the God we adore, 

Our faithful unchangeable friend ; 
Whose love is as great as His power, 
And neither knows measure nor end. 

" 'Tis Jesus, the first and the last, 

Whose Spirit shall guide us safe home ; 
We '11 praise Him for all that is past, 
And trust Him for all that 's to come." 

In this tranquil, resigned, and peaceful frame of mind he entered 
the Heavenly Jerusalem. 

Hymn 589. — " Sweet is the memory of Thy grace." — The 
Goodness of God. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm cxlv. 7, &c. This is a continua- 
tion of Hymn 587, and should not be separated from it. Hart's 
one verse would come in best after Hymn 590. 

Early conversion to God, and devotion to His service was the 
privilege of William Naylor. Commencing his career of religious 
usefulness soon after the death of Mr Wesley, he was acceptable 
as a local preacher, and at the age of twenty he commenced 
to travel as a Methodist preacher. For sixty years he laboured 
with zeal and diligence in the arduous and responsible duties of 
the ministry, filling posts of honour, and occupying the more 
important circuits of the connexion. He was a painstaking and 
earnest preacher of the doctrine of universal redemption, and a 



Hy. 590.] 



and its Associations. 



299 



diligent pastor. He was a man of prayer, and his ministry was 
one of power. He took part in founding the Wesleyan Mission- 
ary Society, and was privileged to preach one of the jubilee 
celebration sermons. For six years he was diligently helping 
forward the work of God as a supernumerary ; and in his eighty- 
fifth year, being then the oldest minister in the connexion, he 
calmly entered into rest. During a short illness which preceded 
his death it was his custom to sing through, before retiring to 
rest, Hymn 227, commencing — 

" How do Thy mercies close me round." 
Those privileged to hear him will never forget the fulness of 
feeling with which he sang it. Words fail to convey the depth 
of humility, the clinging trustfulness and utter reliance of faith, 
that were expressed in the tones of his voice as he sang, with 
a power as of early days — 

" Thou never, never wilt forsake 

A helpless worm that trusts in Thee.' , 

When at last confined to bed, he would delight in singing "Rock 
of Ages," and " Jesu, lover of my soul," both of which have so 
often thrown the radiancy of heaven into the opening tomb. The 
last interviews he had with Mr and Mrs Mills and Mrs H. Banks 
were closed by his singing through the last-named hymn. Thus 
the very footsteps of death beat time to the songs of triumphant 
joy. There was in his last days a depth of humility, and a mar- 
vellous sweetness of spirit shining forth, which indicated in him 
" heaven begun below." He also delighted, at the last, in singing 
Hymn 589 — 

" Sweet is the memory of Thy grace, 
My God, my heavenly King," &c. ; 

and particularly the closing lines — 

" But we, who taste Thy richer grace, 
Delight to bless Thy name." 

His happy spirit scarcely touched the rolling flood, for the 
heavenly chariot flashed suddenly through that sacred room, 
and conveyed him to the mansions on high. 

Hymn 59c. — " In all my vast concerns with Thee."— God is 

everywhere. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm cxxxix., Part I. The original has 
ten verses, the last five being omitted. 



3oo 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 592. 



HYMN 591 " that I could, in every place."— "/ have set the 
Lord always before me? 

Charles Wesley's version of Psalm xvi. 8. 

Hymn 592. — "When all Thy mercies, O my God."— Thanks- 
giving for a Particular Providence. 

Joseph Addison's, from No. 453 of the Spectator. This was 
inserted by Mr Wesley in his collection of " Psalms and Hymns," 
enlarged edition, 1743. The original has thirteen stanzas, five 
of which are omitted. Mr Wesley chose the title. 

In connexion with this hymn, the author observes, in the 
Spectator : " If gratitude is due from man to man, how much 
more from man to his Maker ? The Supreme Being does not 
only confer upon us those bounties which proceed more imme- 
diately from his hand, but even those benefits which are con- 
veyed to us by others. Any blessing we enjoy, by what means 
soever derived, is the gift of Him who is the great Author of 
good, and the Father of mercies." 

First, as the teacher of the preachers' sons in Old Kingwood 
School, and finally as the classical tutor of the " Sons of the 
Prophets," at Didsbury, as well as during a useful intermediate 
ministry in Methodism, in both England and India, the Rev. 
Jonathan Crowther served his generation with energy and 
fidelity. In his life he was a bright example of Christian piety 
and simplicity, of sanctified learning, and of untiring diligence 
in the discharge of his duties. During a visit to his friend, the 
Rev. W. Willan, at Leeds, he was seized with the illness which 
soon afterwards closed his earthly career. Just before conscious- 
ness departed a friend repeated, " Who shall separate us from 
the love of Christ ?" He took up the passage and continued it 
to the end of the verse; and then, with peculiar emphasis, said — 

" When all Thy mercies, O my God, 
My rising soul surveys, 
Transported with the view, I 'm lost 
In wonder, love, and praise." 

He then repeated, "He maketh me to lie down in green pastures. 
He leadeth me beside the still waters." His last utterance was, 
" I am thankful." 

For more than fifty years William Stephens, of Duncannon, 



Hy. 595.] 



and its Associations. 



301 



Wexford, Ireland, maintained an unblemished Christian charac- 
ter as a member of the Methodist Society. During many years 
he provided, rent free, a preaching-place for his neighbours to 
hear the Word of God. His character was marked by faithful- 
ness, truth, and integrity. He bore a long and painful illness 
with patience, and just before closing his earthly career he 
repeated the verse — 

" Through all eternity to Thee 
A grateful song I '11 raise ; 
But O eternity 's too short 
To utter all Thy praise ! " 

Addison uses a poet's license when he limits the extent of the 
word eternity. His meaning is plain, but it is incorrectly ex- 
pressed. As the rhythm is not preserved in the verse, perhaps 
the following couplet will more correctly express the poet's 
meaning — 

c ' Eternity will but suffice 
To utter all Thy praise." 

Hymn 593. — " The Lord, how wondrous are His ways ! " — Goa's 
Gentle Chastisements. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm ciii. 8. Three verses are omitted. 

Hymn 594. — " Father of earth and sky."— The Lord's Prayer. 

Charles Wesley's, made up of seven of his " Short Scripture 
Hymns," Vol. II., Nos. 60-66, founded on Matt. vi. 9-13. 

Hymn 595. — " Plunged in a gulf of dark despair." — Praise to the 
Redeemer. 

Dr Watts' hymn, Book II., No. 79, with three verses omitted. 

In early life Lancelot Thurlow entered into the liberty of the 
children of God, and was for thirty-five years an earnest 
and faithful Methodist local preacher. The last days of his pil- 
grimage were cheerful and bright, from the indwelling presence 
of God. The night preceding his death he was greatly comforted 
by meditating on passages of Scripture, and portions of hymns, 
and several times he repeated the verse, referring to the great 
love of God : — . 



302 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 599. 



" for this love let rocks and hills 
Their lasting silence break, 
And all harmonious human tongues 
The Saviour's praises speak ! " 

He was exceedingly happy ; and just as his freed spirit fled, as 
if he heard the music of heaven, he shouted, " Hark ! " and he 
went to join in the anthem he doubtless heard. 

Hymn 596. — " Who can describe the joys that rise." — Joy in 

Heaven for a Repenting Sinner. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 101, Book I., founded on Luke xv. 7. 

Hymn 597. — " Great God, indulge my humble claim." — Long- 
ing after God. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm lxiii., with four verses omitted, 
one altered, and one supplied. 

Hymn 598. — " My heart is fix'd, O God, my heart." — Praise. 

Charles Wesley's version of Psalm lxvii., verses 7-1 1, and 
appears in the " Collection of Psalms and Hymns," second 
edition, 1743, page 81. The first six verses are left out. 

Hymn 599. — "Begin, my soul, some heavenly theme." — The 

Faithfulness of God in the Promises. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 69, Book II. Several lines are altered. 

Ann, the wife of William Walkington, Esq., of Grantham, 
feared the Lord from her youth, and in early life united herself 
with the Methodist Society. Her life was one of cheerful, con- 
sistent piety, and her benevolence greatly benefited the poor 
and the cause of God. Through much severe suffering her 
confidence in God was unshaken. One of the ministers visiting 
her repeated that the Lord would " never leave nor forsake " 
her ; to which she meekly replied, " No ; He never will ;" and 
added — 

(t I trust the all-creating voice, 
And faith desires no more/' 

She soon afterwards peacefully breathed her spirit into the 
hands of God. 



Hy. 602.] 



and its Associations. 



303 



Hymn 600. — "Jesus, Thou everlasting King." — The Coronation 
of Christ and Espousals of the Church. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 72, Book L, founded on Solomon's Song, 
iii. 2. 

Hymn 601. — " Hail, God the Son, in glory crown'd." — A Hymn 
to God the Son. 

Samuel Wesley, jun., from " Poems on Several Occasions," 
second edition, 1743 ; also in the enlarged edition, 1862, page 
366. The fourth verse is omitted. See Hymns 561 and 649. 
This is the first hymn in the second section of the Supplement, 
with the title, " On the Incarnation, Sufferings, Glory, and 
Work of Christ." 

Hymn 602. — Hark ! the herald-angels sing." — For Christinas- 
Day. 

This is one of the most popular hymns in the English lan- 
guage. It was written by Charles Wesley, and published in 
"Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, page 206. The original 
has ten verses. The first and second lines read thus : — 

" Hark how all the welkin rings, 
Glory to the King of kings. " 

One remarkable circumstance in the history of this hymn, and 
one which has contributed much to its being so widely known, 
is the fact that it is printed at the end of the metrical psalms in 
the Book of Common Prayer for the use of the Church of Eng- 
land. How it came there, and to be printed by authority, by 
the printer to the University, is a puzzle to many ; but the fact 
is indisputable. The only reasonable way of accounting for the 
remarkable circumstance is, that on one occasion the University 
printer, having a blank page in the Prayer-book, put in the hymn 
without either knowing its author, or asking any one's autho- 
rity for so doing ; and once having a place there, it is almost 
impossible to displace it, an act which has been contemplated 
by some Churchmen since its author has become generally 
known. The hymn is now included in many church hymnals, 
and is universally sung at Christmas time. 



6 



304 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 610. 



Hymn 603. — " Celebrate Immanuers name." — The Incarnation 

of Christ 

Charles Wesley's, made up of parts of several of the poet's 
hymns. Verse 1 forms No. 6 in vol. ii., founded on Matthew 
i. 23 ; the second and third verses are from the Arminian 
Magazine, 1789, page 390. 

Hymn 604.—" Sing, all in heaven, at Jesu's birth." — The Incar- 
nation of Christ 

Charles Wesley's. The first and second lines are from No. 
324, vol. ii., of " Short Scripture Hymns," Luke ii. 14. The 
other portion is from the amended form of the hymn, as left by 
the author in manuscript. 

Hymn 605. — "To us a Child of royal birth." — The Incarnation 

of Christ 

Charles Wesley's, founded on Luke ii. 11, and left in manu- 
script for publication after his death. 

Hymn 6c6. — " Light of those whose dreary dwelling." — Christ 
the Light of the Gentiles. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 11 of his "Hymns for the 
Nativity of our Lord." 

Hymn 607. — "Glory be to God on High." — " Immanuel, God 

with us." 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 4 of his " Nativity Hymns." 

Hymn 608. — " Stupendous height of heavenly love." — Christ 
the Light of the world. 
Charles Wesley's, being one of his " Scripture Hymns," left 
in manuscript, to be published after his death. 

Hymn 609. — " Let earth and heaven combine." — "God with us. 19 
Charles Wesley's, being No. 5 of his " Nativity Hymns," the 
third and fifth verses being left out. 

Hymn 610. — " O God of gods, in whom combine." — Sufiplica* 

Hon for Grace. 

John Wesley's translation from the German of Count Zinzen- 



Hy. 615.] 



and its Associations. 



305 



dorf, and printed in "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, P a ge 
182. 

Hymn 611. — "Jesus, Thee Thy works proclaim." — The Miracles 

of Christ. 

Charles Wesley's, left in manuscript at his death, and printed 
in the Arminia?i Magazine, 1790, page 277, founded on Matt, 
iv. 23. 

Hymn 612. — " Behold, the blind their sight receive." — Miracles 

of Christ. 
Dr Watts', Hymn 137, Book II. 

Hymn 613. — " From whence these dire portents around ?" — On 
the Passion of our Saviour. 
Samuel Wesley, jun., found in his " Poems on Several Occa- 
sions," second edition, 1743, and in Nichol's edition, 1862, page • 
360. Charles Wesley commences the fifth of his " Earthquake 
Hymns " in very similar words — 

" From whence these dire portents around, 
That strike us with unwonted fear ? 
Why do these earthquakes rock the ground, 
And threaten our destruction near?" 

Hymn 614.— "'Tis fmish'd ! The Messias dies."—"// is finished:' 
Charles Wesley's, forming one of his " Scripture Hymns," 
enlarged, and left in manuscript. The first verse only forms 
part of No. 387 of his " Short Scripture Hymns," vol. ii., founded 
on John xix. 30 ; but it is placed amongst the hymns under the 
heading " St Luke." 

Hymn 61 5. — " Not all the blood of beasts." — Faith in Christ, our 

Sacrifice. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 142, Book II., the third and fourth verses 
of the original being left out 

One of those omitted verses is very characteristic of the 
doubting faith of its author, when contrasted with the bold con- 
fiding faith of Charles Wesley — 

" My soul looks back to see 

The burdens Thou didst bear, 
When hanging on the cursed tree, 
And hopes her guilt was there," 
Some have doubted whether the teaching contained in the first 

U 



306 The Methodist Hymn^Book [Hy. 615. 



verse is in accordance with that of Holy Scripture. (See Matt, 
vii. 28 ; ix. 13 ; and Lev. xvi. 15, &c.) The Jew, when he had 
offered his sacrifice, and fulfilled the ceremonial law, certainly 
must have felt his guilty conscience at peace, and his sins 
washed away, although the sacrifices in themselves had no in- 
herent value ; yet they were of divine appointment to accom- 
plish that end. The Jewish sacrifices, no doubt, received their 
value in association with the death of Christ. 

There are several instances on record of the value of this par- 
ticular hymn. One of the Bible Society's colporteurs was one 
day offering Bibles for sale in the Jews' quarter, at the east end 
of London, when a Jewess informed him, if any of their people 
bought a Bible, read it, and became converts to Christianity, 
they would certainly return to their former belief, and die in the 
faith of Abraham. The Bible-man replied that when he was a 
city missionary he had been induced to call upon a dying Jewess. 
" She had been brought from affluence to abject poverty for the 
faith of Christ : at one time she had kept her own carriage. 
One day her eye rested on the leaf of a hymn-book, which had 
come into the house covering some butter, and she read upon 
it these words — 

? Not all the blood of beasts, 

On Jewish altars slain, 
Could give the guilty conscience peace, 

Or wash away the stain.' 

The verse haunted her ; she could not dismiss it nor forget it. 
After a time she went to a box where she remembered she had 
a copy of the Bible, and, induced by that verse, she began to read 
it, and she read on till she found Christ Jesus, 6 the Lamb slain 
from before the foundation of the world.' She became openly a 
convert to Christianity. This caused her Jewish husband to 
divorce her. He went to India, where he married again, and 
died. She lived in much poverty with two of her nation, Jewish 
sisters, who had also become Christians. All this," said the 
Bible man, " I knew ; and as I stood by her bedside, she did not 
renounce her faith in her crucified Lord, but died triumphing in 
Him as her rock, her shield, and her exceeding great reward." 

The religious course of Mrs Harriet Hirst, of Bedford Place, 
Leeds, commenced in early life, and her membership as a Metho- 
dist continued nearly sixty years. She ever took delight in the 
means of grace, especially in the class-meeting and love-feasts. 



Hy. 615.] 



and its Associations. 



307 



During the trials of a long widowhood, as well as in old age, her 
reliance on Christ was unshaken. Again and again she ex- 
pressed her confidence in God in the words of Dr Watts — 

* { But Christ, the heavenly Lamb, 
Takes all our sins away ; 
A sacrifice of nobler name, 
And richer blood, than they. " 

In great peace she fell asleep in Jesus, aged seventy-eight. 

A chequered course was the lot of John Henry Cassell. At 
the early age of nine years the godly instructions of his good 
Moravian mother led him to the Saviour, and he rejoiced in the 
knowledge of sins forgiven. But the severe trials arising from 
the evils of the wars with France deprived him of his religion, 
and his parents of all their earthly substance. Coming to Lon- 
don, they had to commence life again without money or friends. 
A seafaring life for both father and son, for some years, revealed 
to them such a condition of wickedness and profanity, that they 
relinquished it for fear of impending judgments. The son, of 
whom we write, settled down at Poplar, sought again the favour 
of God, realised afresh his adoption into His family, joined 
the Community, in which he was for nearly a quarter of a 
century a preacher, and as a class-leader greatly aided a rising 
Methodist Society at Poplar. He opened his house for preach- 
ing, and rejoiced to see many sinners there brought to know 
their sins forgiven. His love of prayer and of the means of 
grace were marked characteristics of his life. The Rev. John 
Farrar gave him and his family the sacrament of the Lord's 
Supper, and a more solemn celebration has seldom been held. 
Shortly after, on another visit of Mr Farrar' s, the dying man 
said, " I feel my account is made up : I know whom I have 
trusted : I know the power of Jesus ; I feel His love. I am the 
Lord's and He is mine. Yesterday" (during the sacrament) " I 
seemed to be in heaven : surely I could not be happier if there. 
How much the hymn we sang at the sacrament has been on my 
mind. Read it." It was read ; and taking up the last verse 
with energy of voice, he exclaimed — 

" 1 Believing, I rejoice 

To feel the curse remove ; 
I bless the Lamb with cheerful voice, 
And trust His bleeding love/ 
That is my experience," he added ; " the curse is gone ; His 



3 o8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 616 



blood cleanses me from sin ; Christ is all in all." Thus trium- 
phantly died this tried but faithful follower of Jesus. 

Hymn 616. — " All ye that pass by." — Invitation to Sinners. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 42 of " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1749, vol. i. 

A copy of Wesley's Hymns was lent to the father of the 
late Lord Derby, and when it was returned the word 
66 anger" in the second verse was altered to "mercy," thus : — 
" The Lord, in the day of His mercy, did lay," &c. The altera- 
tion is an improvement. Mr Bunting has made other improve- 
ments in this hymn. In line 3, verse 4, for " your work he hath 
done," read "your burden's undone" (Isa. lviii. 6), and in line 
5, verse 7, for " Acquitted I was," read " For ransomed I was." 

The father of Mrs Hatton, of Birmingham, was descended 
from the old Puritans, and preserved the principles of their stern 
and primitive piety. He was a strong Churchman, not free from 
bigotry, and was induced to ride over from Ilkestone to Not- 
tingham to hear Mr Whitefield preach at the market-cross. As 
he drew near the outer circle of the crowd, the preacher was 
giving out with much earnestness Mr Wesley's lines — 

" All ye that pass by, 
To Jesus draw nigh ; 
To you is it nothing that Jesus should die ? " 

The words deeply impressed his mind, the last line in parti- 
cular, which he received as a direct appeal to himself. From 
that hour his heart and manner of life were both changed ; he 
became a new creature in Christ Jesus, and all his family com- 
menced soon afterwards to follow in his footsteps. 

The guardian care of an elder sister produced those deep 
religious impressions on the mind of Betsy Surr, which led to her 
ultimately finding pardon through faith in Christ, whilst reading 
the a Life of Carvosso." Her after-life was a clear testimony to 
the change Divine grace had wrought. She cheerfully gave up 
home and friends to leave England for Jamaica as the wife of 
the Rev. Wilson Lofthouse. Here, during her brief sojourn, her 
piety was matured by earnest and almost incessant prayer, but 
her feebleness of body greatly hindered her joy. Sometimes she 
would become plaintive in her supplications for more of the 
mind of Christ ; and she would arouse herself from a sorrowful 
tone by singing the verse — 



Hy. 619.] and its Associations. 309 



" For you and for me 
He died on the tree : 
His death was accepted, the sinner is free ! 
That sinner am I, 
Who on Jesus rely, 
And come for the pardon God cannot deny." 
This was her last testimony for God. She bore much suffering 
with extreme submission, and peacefully entered into rest. The 
evening of the day on which she died her remains were deposited, 
with those of her infant, in a grave beside those of the Rev. 
Valentine Ward, at Spanish Town. 

In the Wesley an Magazine we read of the death of Holrody 
Walker, of Leeds, who in his eighteenth year was dangerously 
ill, was very anxious about his soul, and earnestly sought salva- 
tion. After suffering much distress of mind, he obtained a 
sense of God's pardoning mercy while thinking over the sixth 
verse of Hymn 616, so adapted to his state — 
" My pardon I claim ; 
For a sinner I am : 
A sinner believing in Jesus's name. 
He purchased the grace 
Which now I embrace : 
O Father, Thou know'st He hath died in my place." 
He believed in the finished work of Christ, and rejoiced in God 
as his reconciled Father. He lived two years afterwards ; but 
just before he died he said, " I have a sweet assurance that my 
sins are forgiven, and that I am accepted in the Beloved." 

Hymn 617.—" Thou very Paschal Lamb."— The Lord's Supper 
as a Sign and Means of Grace. — Tune, Brentford, 176 J. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 51 of "Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." It also forms No. 11 in John Wesley's "Select 
Hymns, with Tunes Annext," 1761, with the tune Brentford. 

Hymn 618.—" This, this is He that came."— The Lord's Supper 
as a Sign and Means of Grace. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 74 of " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." 

Hymn 619.— "O Thou, whose offering on the tree."— The Holy 
Eucharist as it implies a Sacrifice. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 123 of " Hymns on the Lord's 



310 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 623. 

Supper. The original has four double verses ; the last eight 
lines are omitted. 

Hymn 620. — " Behold the sure foundation-stone." — Christ the 

sure Foundation of His Church. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm cxviii. 22, 23. 

Hymn 621. — " God of unexampled grace." — The Lord's Supper 
a Me?norial of the Death of Christ. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 21 in " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." The original has nine verses ; those omitted here form 
Hymn 552. 

Hymn 622. — " Whom Jesu's blood doth sanctify."— Confidence 

in Christ. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his "Scripture Hymns" left 
unpublished at the time of his death, and founded on Deut. 
xxxiii. 3. 

Hymn 623. — "When I survey the wondrous cross." — Cucifixion 
to the World by the Cross of Christ. 

Dr Watts', from Book III., No. 7; a very popular hymn, 
founded on Gal. vi. 14. The fourth verse is left out. 

Mr J. Cramp, a local preacher at Longford, Staffordshire, had 
preached three times on the Sabbath, and at the close of the 
evening he observed, " It is all over with me ; my work is 
done." This was his last Sabbath ; he lingered on for a few 
days, and on July 9 he tranquilly resigned his spirit into the 
hands of his Saviour, nearly his last words being — 

" When I survey the wondrous cross 
On which the Prince of glory died, 
My richest gain I count but loss, 

And pour contempt on all my pride." 

From very tender years the mind of Miss Jordan, of Norwich, 
was impressed with divine things, and whilst yet a child, during 
a thunderstorm, she earnestly entreated the Lord to pardon her 
sins. These impressions wore away for a time, under the 
teachings of a Calvinistic minister. In 1790, the Rev. John 
Hickling was appointed to the Norwich circuit, and as Miss 
Jordan had commenced to attend the ministry of the Metho- 
dists, she soon discovered the errors she had been taught ; 



Hy. 624.] 



and its Associations. 



under the preaching of Mr Hickling she learned the way of salva- 
tion, and at a prayer-meeting in the chapel she found peace in 
believing on Jesus. Two years afterwards she was married to 
Mr Hickling, and for twenty years they were helps-meet for 
each other. She was a true Methodist, and a sincere Christian, 
taking especial interest in those young preachers who were from 
time to time located with them. Her last illness was short, but 
severe ; she had gone to visit some friends at Beverley, was 
suddenly seized with fatal symptoms, and in a few days ex- 
changed mortality for life. The last time she attended her 
class, her leader asked her to give out a verse and pray. She 
gave out — 

" Were the whole realm of nature mine, 
That were a present far too small , 
Love, so amazing, so divine, 
Demands my soul, my life, my all. " 

This verse gave her comfort in her latest hours ; she repeated it 
with her dying breath, and in great peace her happy spirit fled 
to the realms of glory. 

Hymn 624. — " Rock of Ages, cleft for me." — A Living and Dying 
Prayer for the Holiest Believer in the World. 

Augustus Montague Toplady's, and first published in the Gospel 
Magazine for March 1776, of which he was then the editor. 

It is printed at the end of an article in prose, signed J. F. 
The allusion in the title to the " Holiest Believer in the World," 
is believed to refer to the Rev. John Wesley, who had a short 
time previously published a tract entitled " Predestination Calmly 
Considered," which is thought to have been a reply to the opinions 
published by Mr Toplady on that much-disputed doctrine. 
The term "holiest believer" can only have been designed 
by Mr Toplady as a sneer at the doctrine of entire holiness, 
which both the Wesleys so strongly enforced in their preaching 
and hymns. The original is in four stanzas, and it was uni- 
formly so printed till Mr Montgomery and the Rev. T. Cotterill 
prepared the Sheffield Hymn-book in 1 8 10. In that collection 
Toplady's hymn was printed with considerable alteration, and 
abridged so as to make only three stanzas instead of four. In 
the altered form there published, the hymn has been copied into 
the Methodist and some other collections. As altered, it is 
manifestly an injustice to the author ; hence, in most modern 



312 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 624. 



hymnals, it is given in its original integrity. From the import- 
ance which now attaches to this hymn throughout the world, it 
may be desirable to give the exact reprint of it. This hymn 
gave consolation to the late Prince Consort in his dying hours ; 
and Dr Pomeroy relates, that when he was visiting an Armenian 
church in Constantinople, he saw many in tears whilst they were 
offering praise, and on inquiry, found that they were singing a 
translation of this hymn of Toplady's — 

" Rock of Ages, cleft for me, 
Let me hide myself in Thee ; 
Let the water and the blood, 
From Thy riven side which flow'd, 
Be of sin the double cure, 
Cleanse me from its guilt and power. 

" Not the labours of my hands, 
Can fulfil Thy law's demands ; 
Could my zeal no respite know, 
Could my tears for ever flow, 
All for sin could not atone ; 
Thou must save, and Thou alone. 

" Nothing in my hand I bring, 
Simply to Thy cross I cling ; 
Naked, come to Thee for dress ; 
Helpless, look to Thee for grace ; 
Foul, I to the Fountain fly; 
"Wash me, Saviour, or I die ! 

" While I draw this fleeting breath, 
When my eyestrings break in death, 
When I soar through tracts unknown, 
See Thee on Thy judgment-throne ; 
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, 
Let me hide myself in Thee !'* 

Its first appearance in the Wesleyan collection was in the 
supplement issued in 1830; and in 1832 the Rev. Richard 
Watson, in a letter to the Wesleyan Magazine, erroneously 
attributes its authorship to the Rev. Charles Wesley. If the 
reader will turn to the preface on the " Christian Sacrament and 
Sacrifice," by Dr Brevint, which usually precedes the editions of 
Charles Wesley's "Hymns on the Lord's Supper," on page 8 
of that preface he will find all the thoughts which are with so 
much force and elegance embodied in the hymn by the poet. 



H Y. 624. ] and its A ssociations. 313 



This hymn wa's translated into elegant Latin verse by the Right 
Hon. W. E. Gladstone, M.P., in which form it was copied into 
many of the newspapers of England, the Continent, and America, 
and so became a subject of general inquiry and remark. The 
Premier has since translated the same hymn into Greek. 

General Stuart, of the Confederate army of America, died at 
Richmond of wounds received in a cavalry charge. Just before 
he died, he turned to the Rev. Mr Peterkin, of the Episcopal 
Church, of which the General was an exemplary member, and 
asked him to sing the hymn commencing — 

" Rock of Ages, cleft for me, 
Let me hide myself in Thee " — 

the General joining with all the voice and strength he could 
command. He then joined in a prayer with the minister. To 
the doctor, who was standing by, he said, "I am going fast, 
now : I am resigned : God's will be done and then he died. 

The incidents which cluster around this hymn are suffi- 
ciently numerous and interesting to make a lengthy chapter. A 
few only can be noticed. 

The Rev. Theophilus Lessey was converted to God at the age 
of seventeen, and dedicated to His service in baptism by the 
venerable John Wesley. In early life his delicate constitution 
made it very doubtful whether he would reach manhood ; but 
his education and training at Kingswood School prepared him 
for the distinguished sphere in which he afterwards moved. 
First as a local preacher, and then as one of the foremost 
preachers in the Wesleyan ministry, and as president of the 
Conference in the Centenary year, he was "a burning and a 
shining light." Soon after the close of his Conference year, he 
was seized with that illness which, after two years' suffering, 
closed his career of great public usefulness. When he was 
nearing the eternal shore, he was reminded of the prevalent 
intercession of Christ, and of His sympathy with our sufferings 
and infirmities, when he replied with affecting emotion, " Yes, 
Christ is my only hope; on His atonement I rest, His precious 
atonement ; " and, in the words of Toplady, he added — 
" In my hand no price I bring, 
Simply to Thy cross I cling." 

Several portions of this expressive hymn were often on his lips, 
and he tried to sing the hymn through, his family joining ; 
when unequal to that effort, he would repeat a line, and raise 



314 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 624. 



his hand as an act of devotion. He died suddenly at last, from 
the rupture of a blood-vessel, and was buried in the graveyard 
behind City Road Chapel. 

Under the ministry of the Rev. Robert Gover, Jane, the 
beloved wife of the Rev. Samuel H. Wardley, was convinced of 
sin in early life, and at a prayer-meeting soon afterwards she 
obtained peace in believing on Jesus Christ. She retained the 
evidence of her acceptance with God through life, and manifested 
its possession by her love to the people of God, and to the 
means of grace. Consumption cut short her earthly course, but 
shortly before she died she found much comfort in the hymn 
" Rock of Ages," which was so expressive of her inmost feelings. 
Her last words were, "Jesus is gloriously precious." 

At the early age of sixteen, the Rev. David Edgar found peace 
through believing in Jesus, and soon afterwards began to call 
sinners to repentance. For fourteen years he laboured with 
fidelity and success in the Wesleyan ministry. He suffered 
much affliction for several years previous to his death, but his 
soul was kept in peace. A few days before he died, he repeated 
the hymn commencing — 

" Rock of Ages, cleft for me, 
Let me hide myself in Thee !" 

and on ending it he said, " It is there I am resting : None but 
Christ ! none but Christ !" He died in great peace. 

The parents of the Rev. John Nesbett were Irish Presbyte- 
rians, and he was by them designed for the ministry of that 
body ; but his conversion to God through the Methodists in 
that country determined his future course ; and for fifty-seven 
years he laboured with untiring zeal and energy in the Methodist 
ministry, and had the satisfaction of seeing hundreds of his 
countrymen converted to God as the fruit of his hallowed and 
successful toiL During the four years' illness which pre- 
ceded his death, he read the Bible four times through, with 
Mr Wesley's, Mr Sutcliffe's, and Dr Adam Clarke's comments 
thereon. A few days before he died, he forwarded ^50 to the 
mission fund and the Preachers' Annuitant Society, as a token 
of his love and gratitude to Methodism. On his last Sabbath 
on earth, after the usual reading of the Scriptures, and of some 
hymns, coming to the lines in Hymn 624 — 

" In my hand no price I bring, 
Simply to Thy cross I cling," — 



Hy. 626.] 



and its Associations, 



he cried out, " That is my experience ! my feet are upon the 
Rock : that Rock is Christ : Christ is all in all ! 99 In this frame 
of mind he breathed out his soul into the hands of God. 

Hymn 625. — " Sinners, rejoice : your peace is made/' — Christ 
seen of Angels. — Tune, Sheffield, 1761. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his "Hymns for Ascension-Day ," 
1746. 

It is a masterly composition. There is a bold and striking 
passage in the fifth verse — 

" The wounds, the blood ! they heard the voice, 
And heighten'd all their highest joys." 

For ascribing a voice to the blood of Christ, the poet has the 
authority of the apostle Paul in Heb. xii. 24. The fine hyper- 
bole in the next line may remind the reader of some noble lines 
in Milton, who represents Satan as saying — 

(t And in the lowest deep, a lower deep, 
Still threatening to devour me, opens wide." 

At the close of this admirable lay, the poet, after speaking of 
" the unutterable happiness " of heaven and the angels, 
adds — 

" But all your heaven, ye glorious powers, 
And all your God, is doubly ours." 

Part of this lay forms one of the " Select Hymns, with Tunes 
Annext;" and in the "Sacred Melody/' 1 761, the tune is Sheffield. 
The sixth verse of the original is omitted. 

Hymn 626. — "Jesus, to Thee we fly." — The Living Way Opened. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 7 of "Hymns for Ascension-Day," 
1746. 

The title of this hymn was literally realised by one of the 
most zealous, loving, and laborious ministers in the Wesleyan 
body. To thousands, especially amongst the young in Metho- 
dism, the name of Nehemiah Curnock is cherished as a house- 
hold treasure, as " the children's preacher ; " and with apt 
and abundant illustrations, and extraordinary vigour, con- 
ducted services for their benefit. Born at Bristol, in 18 10, 
he made religion his choice in early life, and at the age of 
thirteen he gave his heart to the Lord, and joined the Metho- 



316 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 629. 



dist Society. Immediately he started on that career of untiring 
usefulness in the service of God which terminated only with his 
life. As a Sunday-school teacher, prayer-leader, exhorter, and 
local preacher, he was distinguished for his activity whilst yet 
a mere youth. He entered the Wesleyan ministry in 1834; 
and his whole pastoral career was eminently practical, faithful, 
and earnest, and attended with many blessed evidences of the 
Divine favour in leading sinners to Jesus. In February 1869, 
through visiting a bereaved family at Bayswater, he took the 
illness which ended in his death. He suffered much, but 
endured all with patience. Up to within a week of his depar- 
ture, he anticipated becoming a supernumerary ; but on Mon- 
day, July 26, he found " the living way opened" to paradise, 
and entered the rest we toil to find, with almost his last breath, 
altering the first word from " our" to " my," and repeating — 
* ' My anchor sure and fast 
Within the veil is cast." 

Hymn 627. — " Entered the holy place above." — Priesthood of 

Christ, 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 701 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii., founded on Heb. ix. 24. 

Hymn 628.—-" Ye humble souls, that seek the Lord."— The 
Resurrection of Christ. 
Dr Doddridge's, being No. 196 in his Hymns, founded on 
Matt, xxviii. 5, 6. The third verse is left out. 

Hymn 629. — " Christ, the Lord, is risen to-day." — For Easter- 
Day. — Tune, Georgia. 

From Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 209. The original has eleven verses, five of which are 
omitted. This hymn is universally adopted in the psalmody of 
the Church of England, a tune called Georgia being used to it, 
being an adaptation of the one by Handel, " See the Conquer- 
ing Hero." 

When about twenty-five years of age, Thomas Lacy was 
brought to the enjoyment of a conscious sense of God's pardon- 
ing love, under the ministry of the Rev. Charles Atmore. He 
had previously been favoured by attending the ministry of the 
Rev. John Crosse, vicar of Bradford. He joined the Methodist 



Hy. 632.] and its Associations. 317 



Society, and ever afterwards was one of its brightest ornaments. 
He filled the office of leader and steward with satisfaction to 
his brethren, and was a liberal giver to church funds. He was 
ill for some time before his death. On Easter-Day he repeated 
to his sister, with a faltering voice — 

" Christ, the Lord, is risen to-day, 

Sons of men and angels say ; 

Raise your joys and triumphs high ; 

Sing, ye heavens, and earth reply." 

When his medical man announced his end was near, he said, 
" I have a pleasant prospect before me," and after a few words 
of the like nature, he gently fell asleep in Jesus. 

Hymn 630. — " Hail the day that sees Him rise." — For 
Ascension-Day. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 211. 

The poet had a great liking to the word " pomp," if we may 
judge from the frequency of its occurrence in his hymns. He 
takes care, however, not to use it in a loose, indiscriminate 
manner ; but seems ever to have his eye upon the original im- 
port. It was a religious word among the Greeks, and was 
used by them to denote a religious procession. Accordingly 
the poet, in verse 2 of this hymn, says, " There the pompous 
triumph waits;" and in other places, "And lead the pompous 
triumph on," " By the pomp of thine ascending," &c. The 
word is not peculiar to Charles Wesley, as it is found in all the 
best English writers. 

Hymn 631. — " Sons of God, triumphant rise." — After the 
Sacrament. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 190. Four verses of the original are omitted, and the 
eighth is altered. It also forms No. 144 of the same author's 
" Hymns on the Lord's Supper," 1745, where the whole of the 
verses are given. 

Hymn 632. — " Father, God, we glorify." — On the Resurrection 
of our Lord. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 9 of his "Hymns for our 
Lord's Resurrection," 1746. 



3i8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy, 633 



Hymn 633. — "Hail, Thou once despised Jesus." — Our Lord's 
Resurrection. 

This hymn was written by John Bakewell, one of the earliest 
of Mr Wesley's lay preachers. There is much that is 
interesting belonging to this hymn and its venerable author, 
which Mr Stelfox, of Belfast, has embodied in a short article in 
the Wesley an Magazine. The author was born in 1721, and 
died March 18, 1 819. He was a lay preacher among the Metho- 
dists from 1749 to the end of his life. He composed many 
hymns. The one commencing, " Hail, Thou once despised 
Jesus," appeared in part in " A Collection of Hymns addressed 
to the Holy, Holy, Holy Triune God, in the person of Jesus 
Christ, our Mediator and Advocate," 1757. It is also found in 
Madan's Collection, 1760, and in Toplady's " Psalms and 
Hymns," 1776, with an additional verse. In its altered form it 
was added to the Methodist Collection as revised in 1797, as 
Hymn 103*, but was omitted again in 1808. When the Sup- 
plement was added in 1830, it was again inserted, Toplad/s 
version being adopted in the first, second, and fourth verses, 
and Madan's version in the third verse. The fifth verse is 
omitted. The author was on intimate terms with John and 
Charles Wesley, Toplady, Madan, and other good men. He 
was present at the ordination of the Rev. John Fletcher, in 
1757. He resided successively in Derbyshire, London, Bed- 
ford, Kent, and Staffordshire, closing his career at Lewisham, 
in 1 8 19. He introduced Methodism into Greenwich. The first 
regular class met in his house, and there the Rev. Thomas 
Rutherford died. At an earlier date Mr Bakewell resided at 
Westminster, where Thomas Olivers spent some time on 
a visit, and in whose house he wrote his grand hymn, "To 
the God of Abraham." The Rev. William Moulton and the 
Rev. James Rosser married two of his grand-daughters. His 
remains are interred near to those of John Wesley, behind City 
Road Chapel, where a stone marks his resting-place, on whiGh 
is the following inscription : — " Sacred to the memory of John 
Bakewell, of Greenwich, who departed this life March 18, 
1 8 19, aged ninety-eight. He adorned the doctrine of God our 
Saviour eighty years, and preached His glorious Gospel about 
seventy years." The Rev. James Creighton buried his old 
friend, and a few days afterwards Mr Creighton finished his 



Hy. 640.] 



and its Associations. 



319 



own earthly course. He was an eminent, benevolent, intelli- 
gent, pious, humble man of God. 

Hymn 634. — "What equal honours shall we bring"— Christ's 
Humiliation and Exaltation. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 63, Book I., with the fourth verse left out. 

Hymn 635. — " God is gone up on high." — Christ Glorified. 
Charles Wesley's, being the second of his " Hymns for Ascen- 
sion-Day," 1746. 

Hymn 636. — " Great God, whose universal sway." — The King- 
dom of Christ. 

Dr Watts' version of Psalm lxxii., Part I. 

Hymn 637.—" My heart and voice I raise." 
„ 638. — " Jerusalem divine." 
The Kingdom of Christ. 

Written by Benjn. Rhodes, one of the second generation oi 
Methodist preachers, who began to travel in 1766. These two 
hymns form the first and second of four parts of a poem on the 
Messiah. Mr Rhodes was born in 1743, and died at Margate 
in 1815, aged seventy-two years. His portrait appears in the 
Arminian Magazine for 1779 and 1797. Others of Mr Rhodes' 
hymns will be found in a volume of " Hymns for Children and 
Young Persons," issued by the Rev. Joseph Benson, in 1806. 

Hymn 639. — " My heart is full of Christ, and longs." — The King- 
dom of Christ, 

Charles Wesley's version of Psalm xlv. The original has 
twenty-one verses. The poet has admirably embodied the 
sacred fire of the Hebrew poet in his verses. 

Hymn 640. — " Come, let us join our cheerful songs." — Christ 
Jesus j the Lamb of God, Worshipped by all the Creation. 
Dr Watts', from Book II., No. 62. 

The child of many prayers and religious advantages, Miss 
Hannah Sophia Corderoy, of Lambeth, at the early age of thir- 
teen, was convinced of sin, and soon afterwards obtained par- 
don, under a sermon preached by the Rev. Richard Felvus. 
The peace which she then received remained with her during 



320 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 640. 



her brief earthly pilgrimage. In the Sunday-school, and in 
visiting the sick poor, she became very useful. Illness, short 
and severe, resulted in her early death ; but she was quite 
happy, and her mind was sweetly stayed on Jesus. Once, after 
a severe attack of pain, she exhorted her sister and others to 
give their hearts fully to God, and she began to sing— 
" Come, let us join our cheerful songs 

With angels round the throne ; 
Ten thousand thousand are their tongues. 

But all their joys are one." 
Urged to try and get some sleep, she said, "How can I sleep ? 
I must praise God with my latest breath." Again she tried to 
sing, but was not able. As the end drew nigh, she had inter- 
course with the heavenly world. She said, " I see Jesus ! 
Blessed Jesus ! He has come for me. Oh, what music is that? 
it is heavenly music ! What light is that I see ? How bright ! 
My Saviour, my Saviour ! what a mercy that such a sinner as I 
have been should enter heaven ! I am not fit for heaven ; but 
Jesus, my blessed Saviour, died for me." In this truly happy 
frame, in the quietness of sleep, she entered the gates of the 
New Jerusalem. 

A sailor at the approach of death was aroused at the prospect 
before him. He was ill, had no Bible, nor even the power 
to read one. He thought of the Sunday-school, but its lessons 
seemed lost upon him. In this mental darkness he remembered 
two verses of Watts' hymn commencing — 

"Come, let us join our cheerful songs," 

and — 

" Worthy the Lamb that died, they cry." 

On completing the second verse, the words " slain for us," rung 
in his ears, and he repeated them over and over till light broke 
in on his mind. He caught a glimpse of the plan of salvation ; 
the verse brought to his mind a teacher's instruction, and, believ- 
ing in Christ's finished work, he found pardon and peace, and 
died happy. 

Susannah Harrison, a very poor orphan girl of Ipswich, was 
called to lead a desolate and suffering life. She solaced herself 
by writing " Songs in the Night," in which are manifest a reverent 
cheerfulness and a placid resignation. In her last hours she 
sung softly with her friends one of Dr Watts' hymns, then, after 
a pause, she added, " Let us sing again — 



Hy. 641.] 



and its Associations. 



321 



' Come, let us join our cheerful songs.' " 

The scene was affecting ; no one seemed able to sing with her. 
Her voice for the time seemed more than human, and she waved 
her hand exultingly as she sang. " You do not sing with me," 
she said; " I cannot forbear." She continued through the night, 
warbling softly the lines of this hymn. Her last night was full 
of song, and as she took her upward flight she pointed heaven- 
ward, and said, " I cannot talk, but I shall soon sing there/' 

At a very early period of life, the Rev. Walter Oke Croggon 
became the subject of deep religious impressions ; and at the 
age of nineteen he found redemption in the blood of Jesus, the 
forgiveness of sins. " I felt," he said, " as if I received heaven 
into my heart." He retained his confidence in God, and, through- 
out a happy and useful course as a Wesleyan minister, walked 
in the light of God's countenance. He travelled and preached 
in France, Greece, Ireland, and England, with blessed results, 
and with his pen he delighted the young in the pages of the 
" Youth's Instructor." His life and its end were one uniform 
testimony to the power of Divine grace. Standing on the verge 
of eternity, he anticipated the songs of the blessed by quoting 
the lines — 

" The whole creation join in one, 
To bless the sacred name 
Of Him that sits upon the throne, 
And to adore the Lamb." 

Hymn 641. — "Join all the glorious names." — The Offices of 
Christ. 

Dr Watts' Hymn, Book I., No. 150. It is founded on several 
passages of Scripture. The seventh and ninth verses are left 
out, and three others are a little altered. 

Thomas Holmes, of Bilston, Leeds, had the advantage 01 
godly Methodist parents. He began to meet in class whilst a 
teacher in Mr Sigston's school, Leeds ; and at the prayer-meet- 
ing held on the Methodist quarterly fast-day, his convictions 
of sin were so deepened, that he rested not till he found peace. 
Removing to Bradford, under the direction of the Rev. John 
Gaulter, he, with his young friend the Rev. Joseph Fowler, 
established the first Methodist Sunday-school in that town. At 
the age of twenty he was made a class-leader, and at twenty-one 

x 



322 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 645. 



he was received as a local preacher. During a life of more than 
seventy years, he devoted his best energies to the furtherance of 
religion in his family and neighbourhood. When illness set in 
he had no fear of death. He found much consolation in reading 
hymns, and especially the verse — 

" Jesus, my great High Priest, 
Offer'd His blood and died ; 
My guilty conscience seeks 

No sacrifice besides ; 
His powerful blood did once atone, 
And now it pleads before the throne. " 

The last words he was heard to utter were, " Precious promises/' 

Hymn 642. — "Christ, the true anointed Seer." — The Offices of 

Christ. 

This is one of Charles Wesley's "Scripture Hymns," left in 
MS. at his death. It is based on Matt. i. 16. Soon after the 
poet's death, John Wesley obtained his brother's MS. " Scripture 
Hymns," and he announced their publication in the Arminian 
Magazine, for May 1789, the first of which now forms Hymn 642. 

Mr Bunting has suggested two corrections in this hymn. In 
line 2, for "the Most High," read " God Most High f and in 
line 6, for " that unction," read " the unction." 

Hymn 643.—" Come, O Thou Prophet of the Lord."— Christ a 

Prophet. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 6 of " Hymns for our Lord's 
Resurrection," 1746, with four verses omitted. 

Hymn 644.— "Coming through our great High Priest" — Chrisfs 
Intercession, 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 697 of " Short Scripture Hymns " 
vol. ii., founded on Heb. vii. 25. The sentiment expressed in the 
second verse, "He ever lives for us to pray," will be found also 
in Hymns 127 and 202. 

Hymn 645. — " Blow ye the trumpet, blow." — The Year of 
Jubilee. 

This bold and characteristic composition is No. 3 of Charles 
Wesley's " Hymns for the New Year," 175a It is inserted also 
in Toplady's Collection, 1776. 



Hy. 646.] and its Associations. 



323 



This fine hymn is founded on the year of jubilee, as appointed 
by the Levitical law. It presents an attractive contrast between 
the law and the redemption wrought out for mankiiid by the 
shedding of the Saviour's blood. The fifth verse is almost a 
paraphrase of the law which enjoins the return of all alienated 
property to its original owner. The fact of this hymn appearing 
at so early a date in Toplady's Collection, although altered, has 
led many to attribute its authorship to him ; but the further fact 
that it is found in Charles Wesley's tract of " Hymns for the 
New Year," twenty-six years before Toplady's Collection was 
published, and when Toplady himself was only ten years old, 
determines the authorship beyond dispute. This hymn was sung 
at Leeds in 1863, at the jubilee celebration of the Wesleyan 
Missionary Society. 

Hymn 646.—" With joy we meditate the grace."-— Christ's Com- 
passion to the Weak and Tempted. 

Dr Watts', forming No. 125, Book I. The third verse is left 
out. It is founded on three various passages of Scripture, and 
was first selected by John Wesley for the enlarged edition of his 
a Psalms and Hymns," 1743. In the second line, verse 3, Mr 
Bunting suggests changing " His cries " to " strong cries." 

The parents of the Rev. John Aikenhead were members of 
the Scotch Church, and he often attributed to his mother's 
fervent prayers his conversion in early life. The Rev. William 
Atherton records the fact that the ministry of the Rev. Robert 
Johnson and the Rev. John Doncaster was made useful to him 
at the time of his conversion. His piety was of the most decided 
character, and his diligence in his holy vocation great. He was 
made a leader and local preacher in early life, and when twenty- 
eight he was admitted into the Methodist ministry, in which he 
laboured with fidelity, zeal, and success, for nearly forty years. 
On the Sabbath before he died, he had read to him St John xi., 
after which he slept; and on awaking, said, "Sleep in Jesus ! 
I have been thinking on that expression ; as if He were the 
repository of even the bodies of the saints." During the night, 
he said,, "It will soon be over ;" and repeated the hymn — 

" With joy we meditate the grace 
Of our High Priest above ; 
His heart is made of tenderness, 
His bowels yearn with love." 



324 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 650. 



On the two last lines he laid particular emphasis— 
" I shall obtain delivering grace, 
In the distressing hour." 
He found God faithful to His promises. His last utterance was, 
iC Lord, still smile upon me, and take me to heaven." He com- 
posed himself for sleep, and quietly breathed his last. 

Hymn 647. — " O Sun of Righteousness, arise." — A Prayer for 
the Light of Life. 

This hymn has been attributed to both John and Charles 
Wesley ; its defective rhythm may show that it is John's com- 
position ; for although he had marvellous skill in transforming 
and improving the hymns of others, yet he had to depend on his 
brother Charles to polish his own original poetical efforts. This 
will be found in his " Collection of Psalms and Hymns," enlarged 
edition, 1743, page 43. Mr Bunting suggests changing the 
word " pride," in the fifth line, to either " guilt," or " doubt." 
He also suggests that it would make a very suitable Sabbath 
morning hymn. 

Hymn 648. — " Let everlasting glories crown." — The Excellency 
of the Christian Religion. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 131, Book II., two verses left out. 

Hymn 649.— " Hail, Holy Ghost, Jehovah, Third."— A Hymn 
to God the Holy Ghost 

By Samuel Wesley, jun., being one of his three hymns to the 
Trinity, and published in his " Poems on Several Occasions," 
1743. It also appears in the enlarged edition of John Wesley's 
" Collection of Psalms and Hymns," 1743 ; in the " Moral and 
Sacred Poems," 3 vols., 1744; and in " Nicholas Revised Edi- 
tion of Samuel Wesley's Poems," 1862, page 367. This hymn is 
the first in the third section of the Supplement, with the title, 
* On the Divinity and Operations of the Holy Spirit." The 
other two hymns of the series are Nos. 561 and 601. 

Hymn 650. — " Branch of Jesse's stem, arise."— Prayer for the 
Holy Spirit 

Charles Wesley's, forming Nos. 983, 984, and 985 of " Short 
Scripture Hymns," vol. i., based on Isa. xi. 1-3. 



Hy. 653.] 



and its Associations. 



325 



Hymn 651. — " Sovereign of all the worlds on high." — A Filial 
Te?nper the Work of the Spirit, and a Proof of Adoption. 

Dr Doddridge's, forming No. 281 of his " Hymns," founded 
on Gal. iv. 6. Every verse is altered, and the fifth verse is 
omitted. 

HYMN 652. — " Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly Dove." — Breathing 
after the Holy Spirit 

Dr Watts', No. 34, Book II. The second verse is left out. Mr 
Wesley printed it in his " Collection of Psalms and Hymns," 
enlarged edition, 1743, page 44. 

Another instance of the value and influence of hymns is fur- 
nished by the following incident : — u A young man who had been 
the leader of gaiety amongst the middle ranks of the place in 
which he dwelt, went to a Scripture-reading at the persuasion of 
a friend ; and the Word of God went like an arrow to his heart. 
To stifle his convictions, he went to a neighbouring public-house, 
where several young men spent their evenings in revelry. His 
talent for singing made him doubly welcome amongst them. In 
the midst of singing a song, the words vanished from his mind ; 
he tried in vain to recall them ; the only lines he could remem- 
ber were these, by Dr Watts — 

* Come, Holy Spirit, heavenly Dove, 
With all Thy quickening powers ; 
Come, shed abroad a Saviour's love, 
And that shall kindle ours.' 
He left the house deeply wounded in spirit, his pride humbled, 
and, seeking earnestly for pardon till he found it, he spent the 
rest of his life in the service of God." 

Hymn 653. — " Come, Holy Spirit, raise our songs." — For the 
Day of Pentecost 
This hymn is made up from two sources. The first, second, 
and third verses were written by Robert Carr Brackenbury ; the 
remaining portion of the hymn is from Charles Wesley's u Hymns 
and Sacred Poems," 1742, page 165. Mr Brackenbury was one 
of the most useful men in Methodism for about half a century. 
He was born in Lincolnshire in 1752, and began to itinerate, as 
an endeared friend of both John and Charles Wesley, in 1782. 



326 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 654. 



He founded Methodism in the Channel Islands, at Weymouth, 
and Portland. To divert his mind, on the death of Mr Wesley ? 
he wrote, collected, and published a small volume of " Sacred 
Poems and Hymns," 1792. Mr Brackenbury died in August 
1 8 18. A most interesting record of his life was lately published 
by Mrs Smith, daughter of Dr Adam Clarke, under the title of 
" Raithby Hall." This estimable man felt a strong objection to 
anything being said to his praise after his death. The writer of 
these notes has secured a copy of a private portrait of him, which 
exhibits the dignity of the gentleman, and the meekness and 
gentleness of the Christian. 

Mr Bunting describes the first three words in the third and 
fourth lines as helping to make two clumsy lines ; whilst the 
third verse is so bad, he has supplied the verse in an amended 
form, with the date of 1859 written to it. 

" By this the blest disciples knew 

Their risen Lord had reach' d His throne ; 
Obtain'd the grace by promise due, 

And shower'd its fulness on His own." 

The word " promise" in the third verse, by Mr Brackenbury f 
and the same word in the fourth verse, by Mr Wesley, is used 
in two different senses. In the latter instance, Mr Bunting sug- 
gests, instead of " The apostolic promise given," to read, " The 
evangelistic promise given ;" — as the promise alluded to in that 
line was given to the apostles, not by them. 

Hymn 654. — " Creator, Spirit, by whose aid. — Vent Creator 

Sfiiritus. 

The renown of this hymn extends over some fifteen hundred 
years. It has been generally attributed to Charlemagne, but 
some scholars object, and give their reasons ; others affix the 
name of Ambrose, Bishop of Milan in the fourth century, as 
the writer of the original Latin hymn. It is of very early date ; 
and the Church has recognised its claim to superiority over all 
others, by retaining it in the offices for the ordering of priests, 
the consecration of bishops, the coronation of kings, the cele- 
bration of synods, the creation of popes, and on other like great 
occasions. The translation at present in use was made from 
the Latin by John Dryden, a celebrated English poet, towards 
the end of his life, and after he had joined the Church of Rome, 
to try, by such religious duties as that Church appointed, to 



Hy. 656.] 



and its Associations. 



327 



amend some of the errors of his former life. Dryden was born 
in 163 1, and educated at Westminster, and Trinity College, 
Cambridge. He was a man of letters from his youth, and is 
one of the most distinguished of England's poets. He died in 
1700, and is buried in Westminster Abbey. The translation 
from which this hymn is selected, consists of thirty-nine lines, 
nine of which are omitted. Mr Wesley first inserted this hymn 
in his collection of" Psalms and Hymns," 1738, and it was also 
included in subsequent editions. 

Hymn 655. — "Jesus, we on the words depend." — For Whit- 
Sunday. 

Charles Wesley's, forming No. 12 of " Hymns of Petition and 
Thanksgiving for the Promise of the Father," 1746, founded on 
John xiv. 25-27. Mr Bunting suggests these alterations : — In 
line 3, verse 4, " His legacy" to " Thy legacy :" in the next line, 
"our Lord's" to " Thine own and the last line, 
" And change, and make us all like Thee," 

altered to 

" And make us all, O Christ, like Thee." 

Hymn 656. — "Why should the children of a king."— The Wit- 
nessing and Sealing Spirit. 

Dr Watts', being No. 144, Book I. 

It will be found in John Wesley's " Collection of Psalms and 
Hymns," second edition, 1741. 

One hundred years ago, on one of Mr Wesley's visits to Ches- 
terfield, he had commenced an out-door service in the market- 
place. During the first prayer the constable came and de- 
manded his presence before a magistrate. The prayer ended, 
the man with authority marched off with the preacher ; but before 
doing so, the man of prayer showed his faith by saying to his 
hearers, " Friends, sing a hymn whilst I am gone, — I shall soon 
be back and he gave out the couplet — 

" Why should the children of a king 
Go mourning all their days?" 

Mr Wesley returned and preached before the hymn had been 
sung through a second time. 



328 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 660. 



Hymn 657.-—" Eternal Spirit, come." — For Whit- Sunday. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 3 of " Hymns of Petition and 
Thanksgiving," &c. The third verse is left out. 

Hymn 658.—" Father, glorify Thy Son."— For Whit-Sunday. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 9 of " Hymns of Petition and 
Thanksgiving," &c., founded on John xiv. 16, 17. The second 
and fourth verses are omitted, and several lines are altered. 
The last line reads thus — 

" Jesus said, it shall be so." 

Hymn 659. — "O Thou that hear'st when sinners cry." — The 
Backslider Restored. 

Dr Watts', being his version of Psalm li., Part III. ; one line is 
altered, and the fifth verse is left out. This commences the 
fourth section of the Supplement, with the title " Penitential 
Hymns." 

Hymn 660. — "How sad our state by nature is!" — Faith in 
Christ for Pardon and Sa7ictification. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 90, Book II. The fifth verse is omitted. 

Methodism in York had true and sincere friends in Robert 
Spence and his wife. Mrs Spence was convinced of sin under 
the preaching of two godly clergymen ; but by their teaching 
she proceeded no further in the spiritual life. Under deep con- 
victions for sin, she went to hear the Methodists in Yorkshire, 
when it was thought to be a reproach to be even associated with 
them. She was led to cast in her lot amongst them, and her 
decision soon led to her finding pardon. Her usefulness in the 
Church commenced at once. Not content with the blessings 
she had received, she read what books she could obtain on 
entire sanctification, and gave herself no rest till that great 
blessing was her own happy experience ; and in its enjoyment 
she lived to the end of her life. When on the threshold of 
eternity, she acknowledged her indebtedness to grace alone for 
salvation. " This," she said, " will never fail " — 

" To the blest fountain of Thy blood, 
Incarnate God, I fly." 
She continued to praise God till her happy spirit escaped to 
paradise. 



Hy. 66a] 



and its Associations. 



329 



. A godly ancestry was the happy privilege of Mary Elizabeth 
Rowe, wife of the Rev. Thomas Rowe. Her maternal grand- 
father was Dr James Hamilton, who was so long and continu- 
ously associated with Mr Wesley, who once preached before 
the Conference by his desire, and whose portrait, with that 
of Mr Cole, form a trio, so often engraved, representing Mr 
Wesley walking with his two friends in Edinburgh. The sudden 
death of a sister induced Mrs Rowe to join the Methodist 
Society, and soon afterwards she was made a partaker of the 
pardoning love of God. Her after-life was in accordance with 
this godly beginning ; and when laid aside by illness, she had 
an impression on her mind that her end was near, but retained 
her unshaken trust in Christ. A few hours before she expired, 
she exclaimed with great fervour — 

" A guilty, weak, and helpless worm, 
Into Thy hands I fall ; 
Be Thou my strength and righteousness, 
My Saviour, and my alL" 

In this resigned, happy frame she soon afterwards entered into 
rest. 

The Rev. George Marsden records of one of his interviews 
with the Rev. Richard Watson, during his last illness, with what 
pleasure the suffering divine spoke on the subject of Christ 
crucified. He dwelt for some time on its infinite importance, 
as the only foundation on which to rest for pardon, acceptance 
with God, and eternal life. He then spoke of his own unworthi- 
ness, and of his firm reliance on the atonement, and repeated 
with solemn and deep feeling the last verse of Hymn 660 — 

" A guilty, weak, and helpless worm, 
Into Thy hands I fall ; 
Be Thou my strength and righteousness, 
My Saviour, and my all." 

For more than fifty years, Walker B. Benson, of Liverpool, 
was a useful member and officer of the Methodist Church. 
After a short seafaring life, he settled down to business in Leeds, 
where, at the age of twenty, a dangerous illness was blessed to 
his conversion. A consistent and holy walk marked his future 
life. As a class-leader he was useful and diligent, in Leeds, in 
Canada, and at Mount Pleasant, Liverpool. His last illness was 



330 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 663, 



brief, but his confidence in God was unshaken, and his dying 
testimony was expressed with peculiar emphasis in the words — 

" A guilty, weak, and helpless worm, 
Into Thy hands I fall ; 
Be Thou my strength and righteousness. 
My Saviour, and my all." 

As early in life as her eleventh year, Eliza Neilson, third 
daughter of the Rev. William Burt, was truly converted to God, 
and she left the marks of her godlikeness on the society in which 
she moved ever afterwards, and enjoyed for some years before 
her death the inestimable blessing of perfect love. Her last ill- 
ness was brief and unexpected, but every word of her conversa- 
tion "had respect to her love to Christ, her happy state, and her 
hope of heaven." When dying, Mr Neilson asked, " Are you 
going to leave us ?" She exclaimed, in reply — 

" A guilty, weak, and helpless worm, 
Into Thy hands I fall ; 
Be Thou my strength and righteousness, 
My Saviour, and my all." 

And after adding, " All is well !" she entered the heavenly Jeru- 
salem. 

Hymn 661.—" O Thou who hast redeem' d of old." — Desiring to 

Love. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 24 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems/' 1749, vol. i , with four verses omitted. 

Hymn 662. — " Regardless now of things below." — Looking unto 

Jesus, 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and .Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 21. 

Hymn 663. — "O for a closer walk with God." — Walking with 

God. 

William Cowper's, forming No. 3 in the " Olney Collection," 
written in 1779, an d founded on Gen. v. 24. 

Considering the depressing circumstances under which 
Cowper wrote many of his hymns, there are few which indicate 
more spiritual hopefulness from under a cloud than this ear- 
nestly-expressed hymn of supplication, desire, and self-sacrifice. 



Hy. 663.] 



and its Associations. 



331 



Those of his hymns are the most pathetic which give expression 
to his own inward fears and conflicts. 

Mrs Mathison and the Rev. John Anderson were children 
together in the same school, and they remained friends of each 
other, and friends of Methodism, during life. In 18 12 the first 
Methodist sermon heard by Mrs Mathison was preached by the 
Rev. Joseph Benson in Great Queen Street Chapel. The word 
came with power to her heart ; she joined the Society, and 
received her note of admission at the hands of the Rev. John 
Barber, and her first ticket from the Rev. Dr Adam Clarke. 
She became a useful class- leader both in London and Liver- 
pool. She was called to pass through both prosperous and 
adverse circumstances, but her faith and piety changed not. 
When the end drew nigh she said, " I have given all into the 
hands of Jesus, and repeated the lines — 

" O for a closer walk with God, 
A calm and heavenly frame ; 
A light to guide me on the road 
That leads me to the Lamb ! ' 

and in a few minutes life gently ebbed out, and the redeemed 
and sanctified spirit entered the paradise of God. 

Many men have commenced a long career of prosperity in 
London with but small beginnings. Mr Robert Middleton came 
from Durham to the metropolis in the last century an entire 
stranger. Divine providence guided his steps ; at the age of 
thirty he heard a sermon by a Methodist preacher, believed 
to have been the Rev. John Pawson, under which he became 
thoroughly convinced of sin, and in the solitude of his closet 
that night he found that peace which passeth understanding, 
and which for sixty years afterwards enabled him to render 
important and cheerful service to the cause of Methodism in 
London. For half a century the principal preachers of the 
body found a welcome home under his roof, and the funds of 
the connexion were greatly aided by his munificence. Nor 
were the poor of the Lord's people less noticed, or less bene- 
fited by his benevolence. Up to the age of ninety he had wit- 
nessed a good confession : his last days found him enfeebled 
and speechless, yet his desire for a closer communion with God 
was expressed, just before he lost the power of speech, in the 
lines of Cowper's hymn — 



332 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 671. 



" O for a closer walk with God, 

A calm and heavenly frame," &c. 

He was soon afterwards gratified by being permitted to "walk 
with Him in white 9i in the better land above. 

Hymn 664. — " Infinite Power, eternal Lord." — The Comparison 
and Complaint 

Dr Watts', from " Horas Lyricae," 1705. The fifth and tenth 
verses are left out. It is published in John Wesley's " Psalms 
and Hymns," second edition, 1743. 

Hymn 665. — "Long have I sat beneath the sound." — Unfruit- 
f illness. Ignorance, and Unsanctified Affections. 
Dr Watts', No. 165, Book II. The second verse is omitted, 
and the fifth line is altered from " My dear Almighty and my 
God," and improved by the change. 

Hymn 666. — " Father, I stretch my hands to Thee."-— Prayer 
for Faith. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Psalms and Hymns," second edition, 
1743. Two of the verses are altered. 

Hymn 667. — " By secret influence from above." — " Thou triest 

man every moment? 

Charles Wesley's, a " Scripture Hymn," founded on Job vii. 

17, 18, and left in manuscript when the author died. 

Hymn 668. — " Long have I waited, Lord." — " / have waited for 
Thy salvation, O Lord? 

Charles Wesley's, a " Scripture Hymn," founded on Gen. xlix. 

18, and left in manuscript at the author's death. 

Hymn 669. — "The God of Abraham praise." 
j, 670. — " Though nature's strength decay." 
„ 671. — " Before the great Three-One." 

To the God of Abraham. 

This hymn was written by Thomas Olivers, and published by 
him in 1772. Whilst the author was on a friendly visit to John 
Bakewell, of Westminster (one of the very early Methodist lay 
preachers), he visited the Jews' Synagogue, where he heard a 
celebrated air sung by the priest, Signior Leoni. Olivers was 



Hy. 671.] 



and its Associations, 



333 



so captivated with the singing and the air, that he resolved at 
once to write a Christian hymn to suit the air, so that the Metho- 
dists might sing it, and in Mr BakewelPs hospitable dwelling 
that truly magnificent hymn was written. It was received with 
such enthusiasm by the Methodists, that in the second year 
eight editions had been demanded. The original is in three 
parts ; it is based on several passages in the Old Testament. 
Olivers was a remarkable man. Born in 1725, he led a very 
profligate life as a shoemaker, till converted under the ministry 
of Mr Whiten* eld ; and in 1753 Mr Wesley accepted him as a 
preacher of the gospel, and in his later years he was em- 
ployed as corrector of the press. He died in March 1799, 
and is interred in the same vault with Mr Wesley, in City 
Road Chapel Yard. Olivers wrote two or three other hymns of 
considerable merit, and some fierce controversial works. James 
Montgomery says of this hymn, " The God of Abraham : ' ; — 
" There is not in our language a lyric of more majestic style, 
more elevated thought, or more glorious imagery. Its structure, 
indeed, is unattractive on account of the short lines, but like a 
stately pile of architecture, severe and simple in design, it 
strikes less on the first view than after deliberative examination/'' 
This hymn commences the fifth section of the Supplement, with 
the title, " The Experience and Privileges of Believers." The 
only portrait of Mr Olivers is in the Arminian Magazine for 1779. 

In the Wesleyan Magazi?ie several instances of the usefulness 
of this hymn have been recorded. Mrs Booth, of Huddersfield, 
who died September 17, 1856, a few days before her death 
asked that the hymn to "The God of Abraham" might be read 
to her. After listening to the third verse — 

* ' He calls a worm His friend, 
He calls Himself my God ; 
And He shall save me to the end, 
Through Jesu's blood " — 

she exclaimed, " It will be so, and that very soon : read it again 
and the whole hymn ; it is just my experience at present. Oh, 
how I long to be with Jesus ! " 

The uncertainty of life was marked by a sentence written by 
the Rev. J. Relph in reference to one of his college friends : — 
" Of the candidates for the ministry who entered the Wesleyan 
Theological Institution at Hoxton in 1837, nearly one-half have 
already died ! " The name of the Rev. John Smart was then 



334 



The Methodist Hyntn-Book [Hy. 671. 



added to the number. In early life he was converted to God, 
and whilst yet a youth, was appointed the leader of a class, and 
was found a diligent labourer in the Sunday-school, the Bene- 
volent Society, the Tract Society, and in other spheres of 
usefulness. He had a short but glorious career as a Methodist 
preacher. When illness prostrated his body, his faith con- 
tinued strong. The day but one before he died he exclaimed, 
with holy joy and triumphant faith, "Christ is mine ! heaven is 
mine ! * During the following night he repeated — 

" He by Himself hath sworn, 
I on His oath depend ; 
I shall, on eagles' wings upborne, 
To heaven ascend.' " 

A friend, standing by, repeated the remainder of the verse — 

" I shall behold His face," &c, 

to which he immediately referred, observing to his wife what 
a happy effect had been produced on his mind nearly two years 
before by the appropriate quotation of that verse by a lady in a 
love-feast at Barnsley. After urging his daughter to begin to 
love God, he peacefully entered into rest. 

The ministrations of the Rev. L. Hargreaves and the Rev. R. 
Needham were, through the blessing of God, instrumental in 
bringing several members of the Fishwick family to a knowledge 
of sins forgiven. Mr William Fishwick, of Longholme, seeing 
the good work in the family, went himself to hear the Methodists, 
and his prejudices against them at once gave way. The Rev. 
Jabez Bunting's sermon on "Justification by Faith," which he 
read, pointed out to him the way of salvation, and at the age of 
twenty-two he received his first ticket of membership from the 
Rev. Isaac Keeling, and soon afterwards found the Lord, to the 
joy of his heart. He retained to the end of his life a clear 
assurance of his acceptance with God. As the employer of 
several hundreds of persons, he exemplified the character of " a 
master," as set forth by Charles Wesley in the 470th Hymn in 
the collection. He was a friend to those he employed, to the 
poor around him, and to the cause of God generally. He laid 
the foundation-stone of the large Wesleyan Chapel at Burnley 
in 1839, and contributed liberally to its funds. His last ill- 
ness was short and severe ; but he enjoyed the presence of 
his Master. His last strength was spent in a prayer for his 



Hy. 671.] and its Associations. 



335 



children ; and being exhausted, he lay still for a time, and then 
said — 

*' I shall behold His face ; 
I shall His power adore.'* 

As he seemed unable to proceed, Miss Kaye, his sister, repeated 
the next line — 

" And sing the wonders of His grace." 

He instantly took it up, and added, " For evermore, for ever- 
more, for evermore 1 " repeating these words as long as his 
strength lasted ; and with a parting prayer for God's blessing, 
he peacefully fell asleep in Jesus. 

The ministry and holy conversation of the Rev. Dr Adam Clarke 
were the means of the conversion, in early life, of Elizabeth 
Geake, of Frogwell, Cornwall. As Miss Lingmaid, she fre- 
quently rode on her pony to various Methodist preaching-places, 
for she was a good singer, and she had special pleasure in aiding 
the psalmody. When upwards of eighty years of age she said, 
" My voice is weak, but I can still sing ; I sing here/' pointing 
to her heart. A friend asked her to give her a morning-song. 
" I think I can," she replied, and with a thin, tremulous voice 
she chanted some sweet lines, which, she said, Dr Adam Clarke 
taught her when a girl, when he used to preach in her father's 
parlour. The lines were Olivers' hymn, " The God of Abraham," 
sung to Leoni. She could repeat the whole hymn verbatim. 
Shortly before her death she observed to a friend, " I can look 
at the mattock, the shovel, and the grave without dread." She 
closed her lengthened earthly pilgrimage by repeating this fine 
hymn. 

The Rev. William Worth, Wesleyan minister, when closing 
his earthly course, said, "Yes, precious Saviour! Thou art mine! — 

' I shall behold His face, 
I shall His power adore ; 
And sing the wonders of His grace 
For evermore.' " 

The eminently pious Richard Watson, when near the end of 
his last illness, one night, moved by a sudden impulse, as he lay 
in bed, exclaimed, with tears flowing down his languid counte- 
nance, "I am a worm, a poor, vile worm, not worthy to lift its 
head ; but then the worm is permitted to crawl out of the earth 
into the garden of the Lord, and there, among the flowers and 



33^ 



The Methodist Hymn- Book [Hy. 671. 



fruits, if it can, to speculate on the palace and ivory throne of 
Solomon — 

' I shall behold His face, 
I shall His power adore ; 
And sing the wonders of His grace 
For evermore. 5 " 

It was remarked, " No doubt you will see His face." " Yes/* 
he rejoined, " there is doubt of everything, but the great, deep, 
infinite mercy of God ; that is sure." And again, just before 
final unconsciousness set in, he said, " I long to quit this little 
abode, gain the wide expanse of the skies, rise to nobler joys, 
and see God." He closed this last conversation by repeating 
this favourite stanza of Olivers' — 

" I shall behold His face," &c. 
Good Richard Pattison, after a ministry of nearly fifty years 
in Methodism, when nearing the harbour of refuge above, 
speaking of the confidence we ought to place in the faithfulness 
of God, said, " Many times, in storms on the ocean, or crossing 
from one island to another in small vessels " — during his seven 
years of missionary life in the West Indies — " I have held by a 
rope, and sang — 

* The watery deep I pass, 
With Jesus in my view ; 
And through the howling wilderness 
My way pursue ; ' 

and I have felt my faith in God wonderfully strengthened." He 
was greatly attached to the Hymn-book, and found great com- 
fort in the frequent repetition of some of the hymns in all the 
circumstances of life, and even with his latest breath. 

In his twentieth year, Joseph Simpson, at a Methodist 
watch-night service in 1844, gave his heart to the Lord, and 
entered into the liberty of the children of God in the February 
following. He made considerable progress in classical and 
other studies in youth, and afterwards became one of the tutors 
in Kingswood School. In 1849 he was sent as a supply to the 
Gwennap circuit, and from thence he was appointed to the 
Ely circuit, in both which he laboured with untiring zeal for the 
salvation of sinners. Consumption cut short his work in 
righteousness, but his peace with God was unshaken, and 
when all hope of recovery was gone, he expressed his confidence 
in God in some of the hymns he loved so much. Once his sister 



Hy. 674.] 



and its Associations. 



337 



proposed to read a few verses, when he selected Olivers' hymn 
to the God of Abraham. When the first part was finished, he 
repeated the lines— 

" I shall behold His face, 
I shall His power adore ; 
And sing the wonders of His grace 
For evermore.' , 

His sister then proceeded with the reading of the second and 
third parts, and at the close he replied again, with deep feeling — 

' ' Hail, Abraham's God, and mine ! 
(I join the heavenly lays,) 
All might and majesty are Thine, 
And endless praise." 

In this happy spirit he found the dark valley of death illumined 
from heaven, and in this glorious light he entered the realms of 
the blessed. 

Hymn 672. — "Awake, our souls ! away, our fears !* — The 
Christian Race. 

Dr Watts', No. 48, Book I., founded on Isaiah xlviii. 28, &c., 
and was inserted by Mr Wesley in "Psalms and Hymns/' enlarged 
edition, 1743. 

HYMN 673.—" Commit thou all thy griefs." 
„ 674. — " Give to the winds thy fears." — 
Trust in Providence. 

John Wesley's translation from the German by Paul Gerhard, 
founded on Psalm xxvii. 5, 6. There are twenty-four of John 
Wesley's translations inserted in the collection, all of which are 
named together on another page ; the first, Hymn 23, was 
written by Gerhard, and this, which is the last of the series, is 
by the same author. The sixth verse of the original is left out. 

There is not a hymn in the book which has afforded more 
comfort and encouragement than this one to the Lord's tried 
people. In a village near Warsaw there lived a pious German 
peasant named Dobry. Without remedy, he had fallen into 
arrears of rent, and his landlord threatened to evict him. It 
was winter. Thrice he appealed for a respite, but in vain. It 
was evening, and the next day his family were to be turned out 
into . the snow. The church bell called to evening prayer, when 
Dobry kneeled down in their midst. They sang — 



333 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 674. 



" Commit thou all thy griefs 
And ways into His hands.'' 

As they came to the last verse, in German, of Part L — 

" When Thou would'st all our need supply, 
Who, who shall stay Thy hand?" 

there was a knock at the window close by where he knelt, and 
opening it Dobry found a raven, one which his grandfather 
had tamed and set at liberty. In its bill was a ring, set with 
precious stones. This he took to his minister, who said at once 
that it belonged to the King Stanislaus, to whom he took it, and 
related the story. The king sent for Dobry, and rewarded him, 
so that he had no need, and the next year built him a new 
house, and gave him cattle from his own stall. Over the house 
door, on an iron tablet, there is carved a raven with a ring in its 
beak, and underneath this address to Divine Providence — 

" Thou everywhere hast sway, 

And all things serve Thy might ; 
Thy every act pure blessing is, 
Thy path unsullied light." 

The origin of this hymn is itself such a remarkable proof of the 
blessing of trusting in Providence that it cannot be omitted in 
this place. Paul Gerhard was a preacher in Brandenburg, 1659, 
and he loved to preach from his heart what he believed. The 
Great Elector admonished him, and threatened his banishment 
if he did not preach as the Elector desired. Gerhard returned 
a message to his sovereign that it would be hard to leave' his 
home, his people, his country, and his livelihood ; but he would 
only preach what he found in the Word of God. So into banish- 
ment he went with his wife and children. At the end of the 
first day's journey they rested at a little inn for the night. The 
little ones were crying and clinging to their mother, and she 
also, overcome with fatigue, could not restrain her tears. The 
sad sight gave Gerhard a very heavy heart, so he went alone 
into the dark wood to commend the w T hole to God. Whilst 
there his mind was comforted with the text : " Commit thy way 
unto the Lord : trust also in Him, and He shall bring it to pass." 
" Yes," he said, u though banished from house and home, and 
not knowing where to take my wife and children on the morrow, 
yet God sees me in the dark wood ; now is the time to trust Him." 
He was so happy that he had remembered the text, and so 



Hy. 674] 



and its Associations. 



339 



thankful to God, that he made the text, in connection with his 
saddening lot, into a hymn, as he paced to and fro amongst 
the trees. Every verse begins with a word or two from the 
text, so that if you read the first words of each verse in the 
German, you just read the text. When he returned into the 
house, he told his wife about the text, and repeated to her his 
hymn. She soon dried up her tears (the children having gone 
to sleep), and became as hopeful and trustful in God as her 
husband. They had scarcely retired to rest when a loud 
knocking was heard at the door. The landlord, on opening the 
door, found a messenger on horseback, who said aloud, " I come 
from Duke Christian of Meresburg, and am in search of Paul 
Gerhard ; has he passed this way?" "Yes," said the landlord, 
" he is in my house." " Let me see him instantly/' said the 
Duke's messenger. A large sealed letter was at once handed to 
the banished pastor from the good Duke Christian, who said in 
it, " Come into my country, Paul Gerhard, and you shall have 
church, people, house, home, and livelihood, and liberty to 
preach the Gospel as your heart may prompt you." 

William Dawson, of Barnbow, near Leeds, the farmer Methodist 
preacher, after a useful career of sixty-eight years, was suddenly 
seized with fatal illness. His last words were the closing lines 
of Paul Gerhard's hymn on Providence — 

" Let us in life, in death, 
Thy steadfast truth declare." 

In attempting to repeat the concluding lines — 

" And publish with our latest breath 
Thy love and guardian care," 

utterance failed him, he crossed his hands upon his breast, and 
expired, in July 1841. On another occasion this hymn had 
afforded hope and encouragement to the same man of God. 
Worldly troubles and anxieties about his farm had disturbed 
his peace for some time, and one day, whilst working in the 
fields on the brow of some rising ground leading to the farm- 
house, he paused, and to divert his mind took from his pocket 
sundry notices which had accumulated there, which had from 
time to time been sent up to him in the pulpit to read. After 
reading them, to awaken more cheering thoughts in his mind, 
he tore them up into small pieces, and threw the handful of frag- 
ments up into the air, the wind carrying them about like so 



340 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 674. 



many butterflies. Instantly the verse came to his mind, and he 
repeated it with emphasis — 

" Give to the winds thy fears ; 
Hope, and be undismay'd : 
God hears thy sighs, and counts thy tears ; 
God shall lift up thy head." 

Mrs Chadwick, of Halifax, was mother of Mrs Atmore, wife 
of the Rev. Charles Atmore. For more than forty years she 
was a member of the Methodist Society, during which time she 
had to endure many hardships, privations, and much suffering, 
but her faith in God failed not ; when more than four-score 
years old, she was attacked by cholera, from which she did not 
recover. In the midst of much pain, she said to Mrs Atmore, 
" My dear, I feel my mind very low and much depressed, but 
that verse is just come with much sweetness to my soul — 

" Give to the winds thy fears ; 
Hope, and be undismay'd : 
God hears thy sighs, and counts thy tears ; 
God shall lift up thy head/' 

Then she added, "He will lift up my head for ever!" This 
seemed to be her last conflict, and shortly afterwards she peace- 
fully passed away, like a shock of corn ready for the garner. 

In accordance with Mr Wesley's advice and custom, Henry 
Ridley, although a member of the Methodist Society, regularly 
attended the Sunday-morning service in the Church of England. 
For nearly sixty years, Wesleyan ministers were welcomed under 
his roof for their Master's sake, and for thirty years he faithfully 
served the office of class-leader. He was greatly attached to 
the means of grace, and in his later years was a most diligent 
reader of the Word of God. He was seized with illness on 
leaving the house of God on the Sabbath, and though called to 
pass through a short but severe illness, he murmured not. He 
knew that he was dying, and shortly before the end came, after 
one of his painful attacks, he exclaimed, "Jesus is my Rock, 
and He is a sure foundation. 5 ' Several times he repeated — 

" Let us in life, in death, 

Thy steadfast truth declare, 
And publish with our latest breath 

Thy love and guardian care." 

His ransomed spirit escaped to paradise, shortly after he had 



Hy. 680.] a?td its Associations. 



341 



breathed the prayer, " Lord Jesus, into Thy hands I commend 
my spirit, soul, body." 

Hymn 675. — "Away, my needless fears." — I?i Danger of Losing 
his Friends, 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 225 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. The original is in ten double stanzas, of 
which seven are left out. 

Hymn 676. — "Bless'd are the humble souls that see." — The 
Beatitudes. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 102, Book I., founded on Matt. v. 2-12. 
Three of the verses are left out. 

Hymn 677. — " Who in the Lord confide." — Psalm cxxv. 

Charles Wesley's version of the one hundred and twenty-fifth 
Psalm, verses 1, 2, and 4. It is printed in John Wesley's " Psalms 
and Hymns," second edition, 1741. Three of the verses are 
omitted. 

Hymn 678. — " God is the refuge of His saints." — The ChurcKs 
Safety and Triumph among National Desolations. 

Dr Watts' paraphrase of Psalm xlvi. The last line is altered 
from " Built on His truth, and armed with power." 

Hymn 679. — " My Shepherd will supply my need." — God our 

Shepherd, 

Dr Watts' version of the twenty-third Psalnij with the last 
verse omitted. 

Hymn 680. — " Happy the heart where graces reign." — Love to 
God— Tune, Oatlands. 
Dr Watts', Hymn 38, Book II. 

This fine hymn was probably never more appropriately or 
impressively used than after a sermon preached by Dr Hannah, 
in Brunswick Wesleyan Chapel, Sheffield, one Sunday evening 
during the Conference of 1835. The writer had listened in a 
crowded audience, bathed with perspiration, to a discourse of 
masterly power, from the words, "And now abideth faith? 
hope, charity ; these three, but the greatest of these is charity." 
The sermon was long, the attention fixed ; but much beyond the 



342 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 683. 



usual time for closing, that devout man of God said he had 
dwelt at considerable length on " faith and hope ; " he must 
leave it to eternity to reveal the extent of the meaning of 
" charity ; * and then in a solemn manner announced this 
hymn — 

" Happy the heart where graces reign," &c. 
The effect was very happy and very successful, and it was felt to 
be a plain, pointed, and powerful application of the whole dis- 
course. The singing was solemn and hearty, thoroughly charac- 
teristic of Yorkshire, and the hallowed effect of it, and even the 
tune, is fresh on the mind after a lapse of thirty-four years. The 
tune was " Oatlands ." 

Hymn 681. — "Vain, delusive world, adieu." — " I am determined 
to know nothing save Jesus Christ and Him crucified" 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems/' 1742, 
page 257 ; five verses omitted. This hymn has been a source 
of encouragement to hundreds of new-born souls, who, having 
experienced the blessedness of those who have passed from death 
unto life, and have discovered the vanity of all earthly things, 
have joyfully sung — 

" Vain, delusive world, adieu, 
With all of creature-good ! 
Only Jesus I pursue, 

Who bought me with His blood : 
All thy pleasures I forego, 
I trample on thy wealth and pride : 

Only Jesus will I know, * 
And Jesus crucified." 
This volume bears ample testimony to the wisdom of the choice 
thus made by such persons. 

Hymn 682.-— "O Jesus, full of truth and grace." — Waiting for 

the Promise. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 238. Five verses are omitted, and several lines altered. 
The third line in verse 5 is altered from "sinless sinner" to 
" helpless creature." 

HYMN 683.— "Author of faith, appear." — " Look unto me, and 
be ye saved, all the ends of the earth! 1 
Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 



Hy. 689.] and its Associations. 



343 



page 166, founded on Isa. xlv. 22. The first five verses of the 
original are left out. 

Hymn 684. — "God of Daniel, hear my prayer." — Daniel in the 
Den of Lions. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 211. Two verses are left out. This is an admirable gospel 
rendering of a popular Old Testament incident. 

Hymn 685. — " To God the only wise." — Persevering Grace. 
Dr Watts', Hymn 51, Book I., founded on Jude, verses 24, 25. 

Hymn 686.—" In every time and place." — " Get thee out of thy 
country" &c. 

Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript hymns, founded on 
Acts vii. 3, and sets forth the cheerful, obedient faith of Abraham 
as a pattern for the Christian. 

Hymn 687. — "O that now the church were blest." — "Then 
had the churches rest, and were edified? &c. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his manuscript " Scripture 
Hymns," founded on Acts ix. 31. 

Hymn 688. — "Blessed are the pure in heart." — " Blessed 'are the 
pure in heart? 

Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript " Scripture Hymns," 
founded on Matt. v. 8. This hymn urges all to pray for spot- 
less purity and perfect love, a leading doctrine of the founders 
of Methodism. 

Hymn 689.— " Jesu, my God and King."— Hymn to Christ the 

King. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1739, 
page 171. The original has eleven verses, the last four of which 
are omitted. In the ninth verse, the poet describes the expulsion 
of Lucifer from heaven in these emphatic words : — 

" Lucifer as lightning fell, 

Far from heaven, from glory far, 
Headlong hurl'd to deepest hell!" 



344 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 692. 



This hymn commences the sixth section cf the Supplement, 
with the title, " On the Establishment and Extension of Christ's 
Kingdom." 

Hymn 690. — " Earth, rejoice, our Lord is King I" — To be sung 
in a Tumult. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 1 1 5. The original has fourteen verses, eight of which are 
omitted. 

This hymn is a joyous triumph of Christ's kingdom over that 
of the kingdom of darkness. Twice the poet boldly apostro- 
phises Satan and the infernal hosts, defying them in the name 
of the Lord, and bidding them fear and tremble in the presence 
of Christ. 

•* Every knee to Him shall bow ; 
Satan, hear, and tremble now." 

And again— 

* ' God with us, we cannot fear ; 
Fear, ye fiends, for Christ is here ! " 

What a sublime and dignified attitude is thus claimed for the 
Christian believer ! The security of the child of God is stated 
in forcible language in another couplet — 

" Hell is nigh, but God is nigher, 
Circling us with hosts of fire." 

Hymn 691. — " Come, Thou Conqueror of the nations." — "King 
of kings, and Lord of lords? 

Charles Wesley's, being the eighth of his u Hymns for the 
Expected Invasion" [of England by the French], 1759, founded 
on Rev. xix. 11. The fifth verse is omitted. 

Hymn 692. — " Father of boundless grace." — " Thy kingdom 

come? 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 1 156 of his "Short Scripture 
Hymns," vol. i., founded on Isa. lxvi. 18. The second verse is 
omitted. This hymn is well adapted for missionary services : 
one couplet is worthy of note — 

" And new-discover'd worlds arise, 
To sing their Saviour's praise." 



Hy. 697,] 



and its Associations. 



345 



Hymn 693.—" Head of Thy Church, whose Spirit fills."— 
Hymn of Intercession. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1749, 
vol. ii., No. 61. Three verses of the original are left out. 

HYMN 694. — " Eternal Lord of earth and skies." — " For the 
mouth of the Lord hath spoken it." 

Charles Wesley's, being made up of parts of three "Short 
Scripture Hymns," vol. i., No. 1059, Isa. xlv. 21 ; No. 1060, 
Isa. xlv. 23 ; and 1043, Isa. xlii. 4. The last line is altered 
from, " And fill the universe with God." 

Hymn 695. — " Let Sion in her King rejoice." — God fights for 
His Church. 

Dr Watts' paraphrase of Psalm xlvi. In the second line the 
word " tyrants" is changed to." Satan." 

Hymn 696.—" Arm of the Lord, awake, awake."— "Be Thou 
exalted in the whole earth" 

Charles Wesley's, being made up from three of the poet's 
" Hymns of Petition and Thanksgiving for the Promise of the 
Father," 1746. Verse 1 is from Hymn 18 ; verse 2 from Hymn 
21 ; and verses 3 and 4 from Hymn 22. Mr Montgomery has 
inserted this hymn in his "Christian Psalmist." 

Hymn 697. — " Jesus shall reign where'er the sun." — Christ's 
Kingdom amongst the Gentiles. 

Dr Watts' paraphrase of Psalm lxxii, The second and third 
verses of the original are left out. 

The fulness and completeness of the redemption by Christ is 
clearly stated in the fourth verse — 

" In Him the tribes of Adam boast 
More blessings than their father lost." 

Perhaps one of the most interesting occasions on which this 
hymn was used is that on which King George the Sable, of 
blessed memory, gave a new constitution to his people, ex- 
changing a heathen for a Christian form of government. Under 
the spreading branches of the banyan trees sat some five 
thousand natives from Tonga, Fiji, and Samoa, on Whit-Sun- 
day 1862, assembled for divine worship. Foremost amongst 



34^ 



The Methodist Hytmi-Book [Hy. 699. 



them all sat King George himself. Around him were seated 
old chiefs and warriors who had shared with him the dangers 
and fortunes of many a battle, — men whose eyes were dim, and 
whose powerful frames were bowed down with the weight of 
years. But old and young alike rejoiced together in the joys 
of that day, their faces most of them radiant with Christian joy, 
love, and hope. It would be impossible to describe the deep 
feeling manifested when the solemn service began, by the entire 
audience singing Dr Watts' hymn — 

" Jesus shall reign where'er the sun 
Doth his successive journeys run ; 
His kingdom stretch from shore to shore, 
Till suns shall rise and set no more." 

Who, so much as they, could realise the full meaning of the 
poet's words ? for they had been rescued from the darkness of 
heathenism and cannibalism ; and they were that day met for 
the first time under a Christian constitution, under a Christian 
king, and with Christ himself reigning in the hearts of most of 
those present ! That was indeed Christ's kingdom set up in the 
earth. Still more recently, Madagascar has thrown off the yoke 
of heathenism and idolatry, and established a Christian govern- 
ment and constitution. How would those godly, prophetical 
poets, Watts and Wesley, have rejoiced to see the realisation of 
such earnestly-expressed prayers as are contained in this and 
other of their missionary hymns ! 

Hymn 698.— "The heavens declare Thy glory, Lord."— 7 The 
Books of Nature and Scripture co?npared, 
Dr Watts' paraphrase of the nineteenth Psalm. The last 
verse of the original is left out. 

Hymn 699. — " From all that dwell below the skies." — Praise to 
God from all People. 
Dr Watts' paraphrase of Psalm cxvii., the shortest in the 
Bible ; the third verse is taken from some author unknown, and 
the fourth is Bishop Ken's doxology. 

. There is a charm in poetry and music which has never been fully 
realised. An instance of this was witnessed recently in a large 
school of poor children in London. The day's work was done, the 
usual singing and prayer were over, and three hundred boys were 
expecting in a moment to be free from authority and at play. 



Hy. 700.] and its Associations/ 



347 



This psalm by Dr Watts had just been sung to the tune of the 
Portuguese Hymn. The master made a few remarks about the 
pleasure music produced, and asked the children to try and sing 
the hymn again. They did so : it was done with care and much 
feeling. Again the request was preferred, — would they like to 
sing it again ? The reply from hundreds of voices was a simul- 
taneous " Yes." It was repeated, if possible with increased de- 
light to the boys. Then followed a few remarks about the music 
of heaven, and how sweet it must be there ; and the boys were 
asked if they had not felt more happy by that singing than if 
they had been at play. Another unanimous " Yes " was the 
response ; and again they were asked to sing. " Oh yes." was the 
instant reply ; and thus half an hour of their playtime was occu- 
pied by singing praise to God by three hundred poor children, 
immediately under the shadow of the palace of the Archbishop of 
Canterbury, at Lambeth, and the children thanked the teacher 
for the pleasure their own voices had afforded to themselves- 
The hymn and tune were fixed in their memories for life. 

For thirty-six years, John Severs, of Ripon, lived with the 
form of godliness in the Church of England, but did not know 
its saving power, till, through the ministry of the Rev. John 
Phillips, in 1798, who so plainly set forth the condition of unre- 
generate man as " stung by the scorpion, sin/' that the Holy 
Spirit carried the truth home to his conscience, and he was 
enabled to believe at once on the Lord Jesus Christ for for- 
giveness. After two years he was made a class-leader, and he 
lived to see his family of five children useful and active members 
and officers in the Methodist Society. At the ripe age of seventy- 
seven his usual good health gave way, and he suffered much in 
his last illness, but he was constantly giving thanks and singing 
praises to God. A few hours before he died, he repeated with 
feebleness the couplet — 

" From all that dwell below the skies, 
Let the Creator's praise arise ; " 
and, after a few minutes, he faintly breathed his last testimony, 
" My ever blessed Father !" 

Hymn 700.—" Lord of the harvest, hear."— A Prayer for 
Labourer's, 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems" 1742 
page 282. 



348 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 702. 



Hymn 701. — " How beauteous are their feet/' — The Blessedness 
of Gospel Times. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 10, Book L, founded on Isa. lii. 7, and Matt, 
xiii. 16, 17. In the second verse, " charming" is changed for 
" cheering" 

Hymn 702. — " Salvation ! O the joyful sound P — Salvation. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 88, Book II. The third verse of this popular 
hymn is found in Lady Huntingdon's Collection, but its author 
is unknown ; so also is the author of the chorus of this hymn. 
The Rev. Walter Shirley, one of the chaplains to the Countess, 
is the probable author of both. 

The ministry of the Rev. John de Quetteville, of Guernsey, 
was the means of bringing Mrs Elizabeth Arrive to a knowledge 
of the truth, when Methodism was in its infancy in the Channel 
Islands ; and shortly afterwards the ministry of Dr Adam 
Clarke, then a very young man, was made the means of the con- 
version of her husband. Mrs Arrive' derived much good from 
the conversation of Mr Wesley and Dr Coke during their visit 
to the island in 1787. From that time onward she was the 
leader of three classes, and devoted her best energies to promote 
the kingdom of God in the world. For many years she proved 
the mainstay and support of Methodism in Guernsey, and a 
great comfort to the ministers during their repeated and severe 
trials and persecutions. In her last illness she was very happy, 
and often broke out in exalted strains of praise and adoration. 
On one occasion she exclaimed — 

" 'Salvation ! O the joyful sound ! 
What pleasure to our ears \ 
A sovereign balm for every wound, 
A cordial for our fears.' 

This," she said, " is my experience now and added, " All 
fear is gone from me : I am so weak I cannot say much ; but 
all fear is gone." In this peaceful frame of mind she continued 
till the weary wheels of life stood still, and she entered into rest. 

Early in life, Charlotte Whittingham, wife of the Rev. J. B. 
Whittingham, entered into the liberty of the children of God, 
and, during life, adorned her profession of godliness. A short 
time before her death, she exclaimed with much energy and 
pathos — 



Hy. 708.] and its Associations. 349 

" Glory, honour, praise, and power, 
Be unto the Lamb for ever." 

Her death was somewhat sudden, but it was a peaceful entry into 
the " Father's house above." 

Hymn 703. — "Saviour, whom our hearts adore." — For the 

Nation. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 11 in " Hymns for the Nation," 
1782. It was written at the time of the war between England 
and America, the latter country being then an English colony. 
The second verse is left out. 

Hymn 704. — " Jesu, Thy wandering sheep behold !" — A Prayer 
for Labourers. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 283, and is a continuation of Hymn 700, with five verses 
omitted. 

Hymn 705.— "The Law and Prophets all foretold." — Christ a 
Light to the Gentiles. 

Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript " Scripture Hymns," 
founded on Acts xxvi. 23. 

Hymn 706. — "Jesus, the word bestow." — "So mightily grew the 
word of God, and prevailed." 

Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript " Scripture Hymns," 
founded on Acts xix. 20. 

Hymn 707. — " Saviour, we know Thou art." — " The Lord added 
to the Church daily" &c. 

Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript " Scripture Hymns," 
founded on Acts ii. 47. 

HYMN 708.—" Lord, if at Thy command." — " And the hand of 
the Lord was with them" 

Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript " Scripture Hymns," 
founded on Acts xi. 21. These manuscript hymns, the pro- 
perty of the Wesleyan Conference, are now being printed with 
the uniform edition of the " Poetical Works of John and Charles 
Wesley," in twelve volumes. 



350 Tlu Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 713. 



HYMN 709. — " The Lord of earth and sky." — For New Year's 

Day. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 148 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. It is also inserted in the same author's 
u Hymns for New Year's Day," 1750, No. 6. It is a fine para- 
phrase of our Lord's parable of the barren fig-tree (Luke xiii. 6). 
It forms the first hymn in the seventh section of the Supplement, 
with the title, " Time, Death, Judgment, and the Future State." 

Hymn 710. — "Let me alone another year." — A Hymn of Pre- 
paration for Death. 
Charles Wesley's, one of his manuscript hymns, and on the 
same subject as Hymn 709. 

Hymn 71 1.— " Eternal Source of every joy." — The Year crowned 
with the Divine Goodness. 
Dr Doddridge's hymn for New Year's Day, founded on Psalm 
lxv. 11. The second verse is omitted. 

Hymn 712. — " Sing to the Great Jehovah's praise ! " — For New 
Year's Day. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 7 of " Hymns for New Year's 
Day," 1750. 

Hymn 713. — "Wisdom ascribe, and might, and praise." — For 
New Year's Day. 
Charles Wesley's, forming No. 1 of " Hymns for New Year's 
Day," 1750. Three verses are omitted. There are few more 
beautifully sublime passages in Charles Wesley's hymns than 
the fourth stanza of this one, which is omitted. The idea of the 
poet is that of a sinner weighed in the " balance " of the gospel, 
and found wanting : the beam begins to preponderate, a soul 
begins to topple into hell ; but hark ! the " remnant " (Rom. 
ix. 27) are praying, the Holy Ghost is groaning, the Son inter- 
ceding, the Father becomes propitious, and the swift-winged 
angel of mercy executes his commission by touching the quiver- 
ing scale, and lo ! that soul is saved — 

" Still in the doubtful balance weigh'd 

We trembled, while the remnant pray'df 

The Father heard His Spirit groan, 

And answer'd mild, — It is my Son ! 



Hy. 714.] 



and its Associations. 



He let the prayer of faith prevail, 
And mercy turn'd the lab'ring scale ! " 

Those who remember the sermons of the late William Dawson, 
of Barnbow, Leeds, will recognise in the above verse, and the 
previous description, the outline of one of that eminent man's 
most powerful and impressive discourses, " The Windlass." 

Hymn 714. — " God of my life, through all my days." — Praising 
God through the whole of our Existence, 

Dr Doddridge's, being No. 71 of his hymns, founded on Psalm 
cxlvi. 2. Like some few other special favourites, this hymn has 
had so many admirers that nearly every line of it has been used 
in connexion with the experience of some of the Lord's people. 
A dozen of these are referred to in the index. Only two or three 
can be noticed here. 

It was the privilege of John Jeffs, and his estimable father, to 
introduce Methodism into Stoke Newington, in the year 18 14 In 
early life the son was converted to God ; and from the commence- 
ment to the close of his religious course was extensively useful 
and deservedly esteemed. For many years he was a useful 
leader, and conducted the singing in the chapel to the satisfac- 
tion of the whole church. The last time he conducted his 
class, he gave out the whole of the 714th Hymn, and he read and 
sung the hymn, deeply impressing all present. The same feel- 
ing was again manifested at the leaders' meeting the same 
evening. He closed the meeting with a very earnest prayer, the 
last amongst his brethren. 

Early in life Mrs Laws, of Sunderland, was favoured with 
many godly advantages. Her father, the Rev. William Sander- 
son, placed her at school under the paternal care of the Rev. 
Joseph Benson, who placed her as a member of Society in Miss 
Ritchie's class. She afterwards resided some years with the 
Rev. Joseph Sanderson, her uncle, most of whose gifts and 
excellences she inherited. For fifty-seven years she was an 
attached and useful member of the Methodist Society. She 
kept up close and constant intercourse with God, and for some 
time prior to her decease she triumphed gloriously over the fear 
of death. Some of her last words were — 

'* But O when this last conflict 's o'er, 
And I am chain' d to earth no more^ 



352 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 714, 



With what glad accents shall I rise 
To join the music of the skies ! " 

When the Rev. John Kemp entered the Wesleyan ministry, 
the salary of a preacher would not enable him to ride to his 
appointments, and he also found it needful to walk from Wales 
to Aberdeen to save costs to his circuit His love for the work 
and for perishing souls enabled him to endure hardship and 
privation, such as is unknown at the present time. He suffered 
much in his eyes for some years, but he murmured not. When 
more than fourscore winters had passed over him, he was 
favoured with a beatific view of the heavenly Jerusalem ; and 
though his pains were intense, his joy was transporting, and a 
heavenly smile lighted up his face : this rapture lasted two 
days : he declared his joy to be so great he could not describe 
it. One evening just before he died he cried out — 

" But O when that last conflict's o'er, 

And I am chain'd to earth no more, 

With what glad accents shall I rise 

To join the music of the skies ! " 
He gradually sank, till his released spirit fled to the paradise of 
God. 

Miss Jane Gill, of Modbury, Kingsbridge, was converted to 
God at the age of seventeen, and five years afterwards she 
exchanged mortality for life. Three years of suffering through 
which she passed proved only to be the process of her ripening 
for glory. As her bodily strength decayed, her spiritual joy 
increased, and often she repeated the lines — 

1 i Soon shall I learn the exalted strains 
Which echo through the heavenly plains ; 
And emulate, with joy unknown, 
The glowing seraphs round the throne." 
In this state of blessed resignation she fell asleep in Jesus. 

Mrs Poles, of Masborough, Rotherham, on the Sabbath pre- 
ceding her death, requested her husband to read her a hymn. 
He selected No. 714, by Dr Watts, and having read the first 
and second verses, was proceeding to read the third, when she 
began it herself — 

n When death o'er nature shall prevail, 

And all the powers of language fail, - 

Joy through my, swimming eyes shall break, 
And mean the thanks I cannot speal^." 



Hy. 715.] and its Associations, 353 



She died in great peace in March 1861 ; her last words being, 
" I am going to heaven ; I am very happy." 

Hymn 715. — " Jesus, was ever love like Thine ? " — " He yielded 
up the Ghost" (Dismissed His Spirit — Greek). 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 270 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
1762, vol. ii., founded on Matthew xxvii. 50. The. author of the 
second and third verses is unknown. 

In early life the mind of Miss Eliza Hoole, daughter of Mr 
Holland Hoole of Manchester, and sister of the Rev. Elijah 
Hoole, D.D., was seriously impressed with the necessity of 
religion, and at the age of sixteen became a member of the 
Methodist Society, having, through faith in Jesus Christ, entered 
into the liberty of the children of God. She never wavered 
afterwards in her religious course. During a long affliction she 
suffered much, but she derived comfort from the blessed pro- 
mises of God and the beautiful hymns in the Wesleyan collec- 
tion. For many years she had been a constant and happy 
believer in Jesus Christ, but her illness had caused her to seek 
improved health at Douglas, Isle of Man. Whilst there she 
observed her usual custom of reading portions in the Hymn-book 
and in the Word of God. On the morning of her death, she 
had read the 7 15th hymn, every line of which is so admirably 
suited to the condition of a person on the very verge of heaven. 
She had marked the hymn by a bit of Berlin wool. In the New 
Testament her mark was at the chapter commencing, " There 
remaineth, therefore, a rest for the people of God." This hymn 
and this chapter were probably the last she ever read. She went 
out for a walk, and on her return was seized with violent 
haemorrhage from the lungs, and in less than five minutes her 
spirit had escaped to mansions of heavenly blessedness, at the 
age of forty-one years. For such a glorious exit, what could 
be a better preparation than these lines ? — 

" Thy death supports the dying saint : 
Thy death my sovereign comfort be ; 

While feeble flesh and nature faint, 
Arm with Thy mortal agony ; 

And fill, while soul and body part, 

With life, immortal life, my heart. 

" O let Thy death's mysterious power, 
With all its sacred weight, descend, 

Z 



354 



The Methodist Hymn- Book [Hy. 717. 



To consecrate my final hour, 

To bless me with Thy peaceful end : 
And, breathed into Thy hands divine, 
My spirit be received with Thine ! " 

When the Rev. W. M. Bunting called upon Dr Hoole after her 
death, the books were shown to him with the marks in them. 
He was much delighted, and said, " I cannot think of anything 
more glorious than such a death." His own happy departure 
from earth was also glorious and triumphant. 

Hymn 716. — " Hear what the voice from heaven proclaims." — 

" Blessed are the dead which die in the Lord." 

Dr Watts', No. 18, Book I., first and second verses only, 
founded on Rev. xiv. 13 ; the third and fourth verses have no 
author's name yet affixed to them. 

Hymn 717.—" Tremendous God, with humble fear/'— A Hymn 
of Preparation for Death. 

Charles Wesley's, printed first in the Arminian Magazine, 
vol. iii., page 679. Is it true, as the poet says in the second 
verse, line 2, that man is born " only to lament and die?" 
Surely this must have been one of the poet's very early, or one 
of his unrevised hymns. 

Blessed with a truly godly mother, the Rev. John James had 
his mind fixed on heavenly things as early as his tenth year, and 
when he was fifteen he could rejoice in God as his reconciled 
Father, a blessing realised under the preaching of the Rev.* Wil- 
liam Jenkins. A small company of God-fearing young men was 
formed in Liverpool, where he resided, to cultivate their minds^ 
and the graces of the Spirit. Of this band Mr James writes 
some time afterwards, in a letter to one of his band-mates, the 
Rev. E. Grindrod : " One is gone to glory, another appointed a 
class-leader, and three of us have been thrust out into the 
ministry." At the age of twenty-one he entered the Wesleyan 
ministry, and laboured with a zeal and success which distinctly 
marked the attendant power of the Holy Spirit to bless the 
Word. His mind was solemnly impressed by that terrible coach 
accident on his way to the Sheffield Conference, when two of his 
brethren, Messrs Sargent and Lloyd, were fatally injured, whilst 
he was spared. In 1822, he came to London; and, in the fol- 
lowing year, was made one of the General Missionary Secre- 



Hy. 718.] and its Associations: 



355 



taries ; his fitness for which office was manifested by the happy 
results. In 1831, symptoms of apoplexy appeared; and, in the 
following year, the repetition of these symptoms cut short his 
work. On the last Sabbath he spent on earth, he commenced 
the devotions of the family by singing Hymn 717, little think^ 
ing that it was to be his closing act of domestic worship on earth. 
The third and fourth verses are as follows — 

e< Submissive to Thy just decree, 

We all shall soon from earth remove ; 
But when Thou sendest, Lord, for me, 

Oh, let the messenger be love ! 
Whisper Thy love into my heart, 

Warn me of my approaching end, 
And then I joyfully depart, 

And then I to Thy arms ascend.'* 

He preached that evening at City Road Chapel, but was unable 
to walk home after service, and by the time the coach had con- 
veyed him home, he found the hour of death was approaching, 
and his happy spirit escaped to heaven on the following 
Tuesday. 

Hymn 718.-—" I call the world's Redeemer mine."—" / know 
that my Redeemer liveth" &c. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 750 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. i., and also in Arminian Magazine, vol. iii., 1780, founded 
on Job xix. 25-27. 

By adopting the erroneous translation of the passage put 
forth in what is called the authorised version of the Scriptures, 
Mr Wesley has fallen into the generally-received error, 
" Though after my skin worms destroy this body," &c. The 
poet says — 

" And though the worms this skin devour;" 

And again, in the fourth verse — 

" Then let the worms demand their prey." 

Dr Watts has the same idea in Hymn 721, post ; and Hart, in 
one of his hymns, embodies the same opinion. In Hymn 726 
the same idea is found ; but the opinion is not found in the 
original Scriptures, nor is it a recognised physical fact that 
worms destroy the bodies of the dead. 



356 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 723. 



Hymn 719.—" May not a creating God." — " Why should it be 
thought a thing incredible with you that God should raise 
the dead?" 

Charles Wesley's ; left in manuscript at his death, founded on 
Acts xxvi. 8. Mr Bunting suggests altering the seventh line of 
verse 2, to — 

" Call them out of nature's tomb." 

HYMN 720. — "Why do we mourn departing friends ?" — The 

Death a?id Burial of a Saint. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 3, Book II. The second and third verses 
left out. 

Hymn 721. — u And must this body die ?" — Triumph over Death 
in Hope of a Resurrection. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 100, Book II. A hymn of much sweetness 
and encouragement to Christians. 

Hymn 722. — "Almighty Maker of my frame." — The Shortness 
of Time, and Frailty of Man. 

Miss Ann Steele, from " Poems by Theodosia," vol. ii., page 
168. A fine hymn, founded on Psalm xxxix. 4-7. The original 
has thirteen verses, nine of which, including the first, are left 
out. For diction, comprehensiveness, fidelity, and power, this 
hymn will compare favourably with many of far greater pre- 
tensions. 

Hymn 723. — " Happy who in Jesus live." — A Funeral Hymn. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 16 of his " Funeral Hymns," 
1744. 

In early life, William Allwood, of Mansfield, Woodburn, 
served his country in the militia. On returning home, the 
godly conversation of a local preacher, and the conversion of 
his eldest daughter, led to his own conversion. From that 
time, the whole course of his life was changed. He was made 
a class-leader, and laboured with exemplary patience in the 
Sabbath-school. After the death of his wife, with whom he 
had lived happily for fifty years, his mellowing experience 
showed the ripening of his own spirit for glory. After this 



Hy. 724.] 



and its Associations. 



357 



bereavement, he commenced his first class-meeting by singing 
the hymn — 

" Happy who in Jesus live ; 

But happier still are they 
Who to God their spirits give, 

And 'scape from earth away. 
Lord, Thou read'st the panting heart, 

Lord, Thou hear'st the praying sigh ; 
Oh, 'tis better to depart, 

'Tis better far to die." 

It was a solemn meeting, remembered by all his members, and 
not very long afterwards he was himself called to rejoin his late 
partner in the skies. 

Hymn 724. — " Hosanna to God." — A Funeral Hymn.- 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 15 of " Funeral Hymns," 1744. 
The original has eight verses, the second and each alternate 
verse being left out. 

Under the ministry of Robert Carr Brackenbury, Esq., Wil- 
liam Barnett, of Horncastle, was convinced of his sinful condi- 
tion, and brought to a knowledge of the truth, whilst yet young 
in years. For thirty-five years he was acceptably and usefully 
employed as a class-leader and local preacher, and was instru- 
mental in rescuing many souls from sin, and leading them to 
Christ. He loved the class-meeting, believing it to be essential 
to the spirituality and effectiveness of Methodism, and estab- 
lished a Society himself in a neighbouring village. He suffered 
much in his last illness, but was kept in perfect peace. When 
his end drew nigh, he solemnly blessed each of his children ; 
and having done so, he shouted with triumph — 

' 1 For us is prepared 

The angelical guard ; 

The convoy attends, 
A minist'ring host of invisible friends : 

Ready winged for their flight 

To the mansions of light, 

The horses are come, 
The chariots of Israel to carry us home." 

His last words were, " There is light in the valley," and then 
his spirit fled away to the skies. 



358 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 728. 



Hymn 725. — " Happy soul, thy days are ended." — For one 

departing. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 55 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. ii. 

It has been sung in the death-chamber of many a departing 
saint amongst the Methodists, and not a few have entered 
" Jerusalem the Golden " with the music of 

" Go, by angel-guards attended, 
To the sight of Jesus go ! " 
sounding in their ears, commingled with that other song, 
" Worthy is the Lamb," sung by the redeemed. 

Mrs Smith, daughter of the Rev. William Sanderson, and 
mother of Mrs Hindson and Mrs Simon, of Inverness, was fifty 
years a member of Society. The testimony of her friends is, 
that few have done so much or so well in the Church and in the 
world for the glory of God. When near death, she sweetly sang 
the hymn commencing — 

" Happy soul, thy days are ended, 

All thy mourning days below ; 
Go, by angel-guards attended, 

To the sight of Jesus go ! 
Waiting to receive thy spirit, 

Lo ! the Saviour stands above ; 
Shows the purchase of His merit, 

Reaches out the crown of love." 

When her spirit was departing, she said, " The frail bark is 
nearing the shore, and the haven of glory is full in view." 

Hymn 726. — " I know that my Redeemer lives." — Job xix. 25. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1742, 
page 126. 

Hymn 727. — " O when shall we sweetly remove." — Funeral 

Hymn, 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 7 of "Funeral Hymns," 1744, 
with two verses omitted. 

HYMN 728.—" There is a land of pure delight."— A Prospect of 
Heaven makes death easy. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 66, Book II. Watts wrote this delightful 



Hy. 728.] 



and its Associations. 



359 



hymn in early life, at his native home in Southampton, while 
sitting at the window of a parlour which overlooked the river 
Itchen, and in full view of the Isle of Wight. The landscape 
there is very beautiful, and forms an enchanting model for a 
poet when describing the paradise above. Tradition points out 
the place where, just across the channel, that charming island 
presents itself to the enraptured vision. The waters before him 
suggested to the mind of the poet the final passage of the Chris- 
tian over the dark river, so gloriously imaged by Bunyan, as 
described in his " Pilgrim's Progress " — 

" Death, like a narrow sea, divides 
That heavenly land from ours." 

The second and third verses especially are descriptive of the 
prospect presented to the eye of the poet Dr Samuel Stennett 
probably had the verse commencing, " But timorous mortals " in 
his mind when he wrote the following stanza : — 

" Fill'd with delight, my raptured soul 
Would here no longer stay ; 
Though Jordan's waves around me roll, 
Fearless I 'd launch away." 

The attraction of this hymn for the suffering and dying has 
centred chiefly in the opening stanza, connected with which are 
many sacred memories of departed friends. 

The Rev. Joseph Wilson was taken, at the age of thirteen, to 
a Methodist prayer-meeting at the almshouses in his native 
village, and there that love of religion was awakened which 
resulted in a career of godliness extending over sixty years. 
The Rev. William Bramwell admitted him to membership, and 
for fifty-six years he laboured with acceptance and success as a 
Methodist preacher. His illness was short, and his last act of 
worship was to join as best he could in singing the hymn com- 
mencing — 

<£ There is a land of pure delight," &c. 
At its close, he whispered, " I cannot sing ; I cannot pray with 
you ; but the Lord knows my mind." His end was peaceful as 
a child's slumbers. 

A most singular coincidence is recorded in the Wesleyan 
Methodist Magazine for 1841. In the October and December 
numbers are recorded the deaths of Miss Harriet Keith and | 
Miss Harriet Reid, both of whom were converted to God in 



360 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 728. 



early life, both lost sisters at the age of seventeen, both died in 
the town of Leicester on the same day, June 20, 1841, both were 
aged twenty years, and both died repeating — 

" There is a land of pure delight, 
Where saints immortal reign ; 
Infinite day excludes the night, 
And pleasures banish pain." 

In her eighteenth year, Mrs Stanley, wife of the Rev. Thomas 
Stanley, was convinced of sin, under a sermon she heard 
preached by her uncle, the Rev. Joseph Entwisle; and she 
obtained peace through believing shortly afterwards, whilst at 
the sacramental table. It was her privilege to have delightful 
Christian fellowship with such pious women as Mrs Pawson 
and Mrs Mather. After the death of Mr Stanley, she removed 
to Deptford, where she conducted a class for some years. She 
died at Derby, in great peace. On the last Sabbath she spent 
on earth, she sang the hymn through, commencing 
" There is a land of pure delight, 
Where saints immortal reign," &c. 
Her family, knowing her extreme weakness, wished her to 
repeat, and not sing the hymn ; but she continued it to the end, 
and then said, " I ? 11 praise Him while He lends me breath." 
Her last testimony was, " Precious Jesus, His blood was shed 
for me !" 

During thirty years, Ellen Nelson was the exemplary wife of 
the Rev. John Nelson, Wesleyan minister, herself filling the 
office of class-leader in many of the circuits in which they tra- 
velled, and manifesting a hallowed and fervent joy when 
sinners were converted and joined to the Church of Christ. 
During her last illness, she seemed to hold special com- 
munion with happy spirits, and on one occasion mentioned 
Mr H. Longden of Sheffield, Mr Bramwell, and Mr Levick, 
as amongst those " ministering spirits" surrounding her bed. 
After she had made the remark, " I shall soon be with you," 
a friend asked to whom she spoke. She replied, " It is 
my dear husband." Filled with triumphant joy, she ex- 
claimed — 

" Could I but climb where Moses stood, 
And view the landscape o'er, 
Not Jordan's stream, nor death's cold flood, 
Should fright me from the shore." 



Hy. 730.] 



and its Associations. 



361 



Next day she was reminded of her happiness, when she replied, 
" How could I be otherwise ? There was a legion of happy- 
spirits in the room." With that glorious convoy, she passed in 
triumph to the skies, aged eighty-one. 

Hymn 729. — " Lift your heads, ye friends of Jesus." — Thy 

Kingdom come* 

Charles Wesley's, being the last of his Hymns of Intercession 
for all Mankind, 1758. The original has eight verses, two of 
which are left out. 

Hymn 730—" Give me the wings of faith to rise." — The 
Examples of Christ and his Saints. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 140, Book II., 1707. 

At the age of sixteen, Ann Sanderson gave her heart fully to 
God, and obtained a clear sense of her acceptance with God as 
His child. Though often assailed with doubts, even in her 
last illness, on the morning of her last Sabbath on earth, while 
a friend and the family were engaged in prayer on her behalf, 
she seemed inspired with the full assurance of faith, and 
requested them to sing her favourite hymn — 

" Give me the wings of faith to rise 
Within the veil, and see 
The saints above, how great their joys, 
How bright their glories be." 

She had a desire to depart, and to be with Christ. Her last 
words were, " All is right — all is well." 

The parents of William Pike had the joy of seeing all their 
children filling useful stations in society, and also walking in 
the law of the Lord. William, when a boy, joined the Method- 
ist Society at Oldham Street, Manchester, and was for forty- 
five years a teacher in the Sunday-school in that circuit. In 
youth he joined other young men (some of whom afterwards 
became £t merchant-princes") in religious and mental improve- 
ment meetings held at each other's houses ; and many delight- 
ful memories still gather round those times of happy reunion. 
His mental and spiritual gifts he devoted to the service of the 
young in the Sabbath-school ; and to this department he 
remained faithful, when urged to devote his energies to the 
duties of the ministry of the Word. Some of his addresses are 



362 



T/ie Methodist Hymn-Book [H Y. 731. 



still remembered for their beauty, simplicity, earnestness, and 
power. A few days before his death, he pointed to the Bible as 
the only book in which he could trust, and Jesus as his only 
refuge. To the friend who was then with him, alluding to those 
members of his family who had gone to heaven before him, 
pointing to their portraits, he added — 

* 8 I ask them whence their victory came ; 
They, with united breath, 
Ascribe their conquest to the Lamb, 
Their triumph to His death. " 

All around was holy quiet, and he peacefully resigned his spirit 
to God who gave it. 

Hymn 731.— "Where shall true believers go ? w — Of Heaven. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 8 of Hymns for Children. 
The third and fourth verses are very similar in sentiment to 
a verse by Dr Watts. 

" There we shall see His face, 
And never, never sin ; 
There, from the rivers of His grace, 
Drink endless pleasures in." 

In the village of Middleton, Cromford, Francis Buckley was 
led to choose a religious life through the death of his brother. 
He became earnest in the service of God as a teacher in" the 
Sunday-school as a class leader, and local preacher. In these 
duties he was blessed himself, and made a blessing to others. 
His custom was to rise early in the morning, and spend nearly 
an hour in devotion with God. In his last illness, he said he 
had a bright prospect of heaven, and, shortly before his death, 
she desired his friends to sing the hymn commencing — 

" Where shall true believers go, 
When from the flesh they fly? 
Glorious joys ordain'd to know, 
They mount above the sky/' &c. 

During the singing he was enraptured with thoughts of heaven, 
and shouted "Hallelujah I" His last testimony was, "God is 

love." 



•Hy. 733 ] and its Associations. 363 



Hymn 732. — " The saints who die of Christ possest." — " They 
rest from their labours? &c. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 857 of " Short Scripture Hymns," 
vol. ii., founded on Revelation xiv. 13. 

Hymn 733. — " How happy every child of grace !" — A Funerat 

Hymn. 

Charles Wesley's, being the second of his Funeral Hymns, 
1759, and was considered by John Wesley to be one of his 
brother's finest compositions. 

In the account of Susanna Spencer, in John Wesley's Jour- 
nal, vol. iv., page 32, an instance is recorded of the value of this 
hymn. One of the most remarkable incidents on record of the 
effective power there is in a hymn is the recital of this one in 
open court in Exeter Castle during the trial of a prisoner. A 
good young woman had been set upon by a ruffian, on her way 
from Sunday-school, and was left for dead by the roadside. 
On being discovered, she was restored to consciousness so far 
as to identify her murderer, and then she died, lost to her intense 
bodily suffering in the sublime joy she had in commending her 
spirit to God in the words of Charles Wesley's hymn— 

" How happy every child of grace, 

Who knows his sins forgiven ! 
This earth, he cries, is not my place, 

I seek my place in heaven : 
A country far from mortal sight ; — 

Yet, O ! by faith I see 
The land of rest, the saints' delight, 

The heaven prepared for me." 

The counsel for the prosecution, in his appeal to the jury, de- 
scribed the death-scene, and rehearsed the hymn, a part of which 
the dying girl had sung in her last moments. The judge, the 
jury, all but the prisoner, wept. Who could help it ? To hear 
in that solemn court, just before passing sentence of death on 
the murderer, the youthful martyr's dying song of glory ! And 
such a song ! 

That captivating piece of biography entitled " The Successful 
Merchant/' from the pen of the Rev. William Arthur, has made 
the name and memory of Mr Samuel Budgett of Kingswood 
known and esteemed in thousands of homes throughout the 



364 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [H Y. 73 3. 



land. From the closing scene of his life we gather these 
particulars: — "After the sacramental elements had been ad- 
ministered to him, he asked for a hymn to be sung, but his 
friends fearing the effort would be too much for him, he ex- 
claimed, ' Sing, sing.' The Rev. C. Clay then gave out part of 
the hymn, ' Behold the Saviour of mankind,' which was sung, 
whilst Mr Budgett, his countenance beaming with joy, his eyes 
streaming, his lips quivering, and his hands uplifted, joined 
heartily in the song of praise. He appeared quite in an ecstacy 
as they sang — 

' O Lamb of God ! was ever pain, 
Was ever love, like Thine ! ' 
After a short pause he asked for another hymn, on which Edwin's 
favourite was chosen — 

* How happy every child of grace, 

Who knows his sins forgiven ! 
This earth, he cries, is not my place, 
I seek my place in heaven,' &c. 

He joined heartily in the singing of that song of triumph. 
Shortly afterwards he tried to repeat another hymn, ' With glo- 
rious clouds encompassed round but his work was done, and 
his happy spirit passed away to the skies." 

Mr Baker Banks was convinced of sin under a sermon preached 
by the Rev. John Byron in Cornwall, and eleven years after- 
wards he by faith entered into the liberty of the children of 
God. Having tasted that the Lord is gracious, he devoted him- 
self to the service of God. As a class-leader he was most watch- 
ful over the spiritual state of his members, himself living in the 
fall enjoyment of the direct witness of the Spirit to his adoption, 
and of entire sanctification. He was a true friend to the poor and 
afflicted, and a generous supporter of Methodism. During his 
last trying affliction he bore much suffering with resignation, and 
desired that the hymns 733, 734, and 735 might be read to him. 
He spoke in strong terms of the beauty of those hymns, and of 
their suitability to his experience. After a pause he said, with 
a look indescribable, and an emphasis that touched every heart, 

" The heaven prepared for me ; M 
and having the 733d hymn again repeated to him, when he came 
to these words — 

" But O, the bliss to which I tend 
Eternally shall last!" 



HY.733-] 



and its Associations.^ 



365 



he lifted up his eyes and hands, and exclaimed aloud, " Etern- 
ally, eternally! Bless the Lord!" In this happy frame he 
continued till his sufferings ceased, and his joys became eternal. 

From childhood the Rev. George Prior Heston sat under the 
Wesleyan ministry, and in early life he realised a sense of sins 
forgiven. In the Sabbath-school, and as a local preacher, he 
was a punctual and diligent toiler. Passing through the Theo- 
logical Institution at Didsbury into the ministry, he devoted the 
remainder of, his short life to God's service. His health failed 
him whilst yet young, but in his sufferings he found Christ pre- 
cious. So remarkably was the love of God manifested towards 
him that he was delivered from all fear of death, and became 
almost impatient to depart. As if in soliloquy, he repeated — 

" What is there here to court my stay, 
Or hold me back from home, 
While angels beckon me away, 
And Jesus bids me come ? " 

Then suddenly turning to his wife he said, " Yes, there are you 
and the dear children, but you will be taken care of, I know ; 
and, if permitted, I shall watch you with holy interest till we 
meet in the skies." With the exclamation, " Glory, glory ! 
praise God ! " he " found the rest we toil to find." 

During a ministry of thirty-eight years in Methodism, the 
Rev. William Vevers faithfully and lovingly performed the duties 
of his high calling. Whilst located at the Collegiate Institution, 
Taunton, his earthly course was terminated, but in all his suffer- 
ings his mind was kept in calm submission to the will of God, 
and in joyful anticipation of seeing Him face to face. The night 
before he died he said, " The Lord will be the strength of my 
heart, and my portion for ever," and then he repeated — 

" What is there here to court my stay, 
Or hold me back from home, 
While angels beckon me away, 
And Jesus bids me come ? " 

His last words were, " Come, Lord Jesus, and come quickly/* 
and soon afterwards he sweetly slept in Jesus. 

The biographies in the Methodist Magazines were made a 
great blessing to Elizabeth Batty in early life. A sermon, preached 
by the Rev. William W r arrener in 1804, led her to decide to cast 



366 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 734. 



in her lot with the people of God, and at a love-feast held the 
same day she was enabled to believe on Christ for pardon. Some 
years afterwards, she entered in her diary, " I am longing for 
holiness more than my necessary food." In this frame of mind 
she tried to live during her earthly pilgrimage, and at its close, 
when eternity was near, and just as the preacher who was visit- 
ing her was leaving the room, she whispered — 

" Oh would He more of heaven bestow, 
And let the vessel break, 
And let my ransom'd spirit go 
To grasp the God we seek." 

A few minutes afterwards she said, " Jesus is precious ; my con- 
fidence increases; I am dying ;" and immediately her spirit 
returned to God who gave it. 

At the age of twenty-one, the Rev. William M'Cornock was 
called out to preach the gospel in connection with Methodism ; 
and he continued his labours for thirty-five years. When by 
illness and age his strength had decayed, no cloud overshadowed 
his mind ; he was happy and resigned. He longed for his release, 
and frequently said, 

" O would He more of heaven bestow, 
And let the vessel break, 
And let my ransom'd spirit go 
To grasp the God we seek." 

In this state of calm resignation his redeemed spirit fled to 
heaven. 

Hymn 734. — " And let this feeble body fail."— 
A Funeral Hymn. 

Charles Wesley's, being the third of his " Funeral Hymns," 
1759, founded on Romans viii. 18. The original has nine verses, 
two of which are left out. 

Thousands of pious souls have been cheered while passing 
through the dark valley by the words of this hymn. There is 
not a verse of it but has been made a blessing to some pilgrim 
just closing life's journey. 

From the age of seventeen, when he entered into the liberty 
of the children of God, the path of the Rev. John Lesson was 
" as the shining light, that shineth more and more unto the per- 
fect day." As a Methodist preacher, he was instant in season 
and out of season, in the chapel and in the open air. On one 



Hy. 734.] 



and its Associations. 



1^7 



occasion, he commenced preaching in a village where tractarian 
clergymen were supreme. The constable was ordered to stop 
the preaching, and tried to do so ; but, as there was no breach 
of the peace, the man of assumed authority yielded to the de- 
cision of character shown by the preacher, listened attentively 
to the sermon, and retired from the service convinced that he 
had best done his duty by letting the preacher alone. Disease 
of the heart put a sudden termination to his ministerial career ; 
but his submission to the divine will made his sufferings 
welcome. At one time, with unutterable feeling, he exclaimed : 

" And let this feeble body fail, 
And let it droop and die ; 
My soul shall quit the mournful vale, 
And soar to worlds on high." 

Sometimes, when thought to have been asleep, he would sud- 
denly exclaim, " Bless God ! I feel his presence. How good 
the Lord is ! how kind to me ! " In this blessed state of resig- 
nation he exchanged mortality for life. 

Mary, relict of the Rev. Peter Prescott, senior, yielded her 
heart to God at the age of fourteen, and at once became a 
member of the Methodist Society. From that period to the 
close of her life, her decided piety was manifest in the devoted- 
ness of her spirit and the consistency of her conduct. Having 
been insensible for two days, she recovered consciousness for a 
few hours, and during that time she sang, with remarkable 
energy and clearness, the whole of the verse : 

" I see a world of spirits bright, 

Who reap the pleasures there ; 
They all are robed in purest white, 

And conquering palms they bear : 
Adorn'd by their Redeemer's grace, 

They close pursue the Lamb ; 
And every shining front displays 

Th' unutterable name.'' 

In this happy and exulting frame she passed away to join her 
husband in the skies. 

The Rev. Corbett Cook, after serving God in the Methodist 
ministry for half-a- century, retired from active work to Guernsey, 
where, blind, but happy, he diligently attended to the duties of 
the sanctuary, till called to his reward in the land of the 



3^8 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 734. 



blessed. In his last hours he rejoiced in singing the fourth verse 
of hymn 734 — 

" O ! what hath Jesus bought for me ! 
Before my ravish'd eyes 
Rivers of life divine I see, 
And trees of Paradise ! *' 

He died rejoicing in the hope of heaven. 

More than forty years ago, a pious young lady in ill-health 
was resting on her couch, and by her side sat a beloved brother, 
himself scarcely well, and utterly without a feeling of love to God. 
His sister, as descriptive of the emotions of her soul, repeated to 
him, with remarkable emphasis, the fourth verse of hymn 734 — 

u O what hath Jesus bought for me ! 

Before my ravish'd eyes 
Rivers of love divine I see, 

And trees of paradise : 
They flourish in perpetual bloom, 

Fruit every month they give ; 
And to the healing leaves who come 

Eternally shall live." 

Scarcely had she uttered these words before he began to think 
seriously on the state of his soul, and asked himself, " Has Jesus 
bought nothing for me ? " He sought and found pardon, and 
both brother and sister, with another brother, not long after 
hat happy change, departed for missionary labour in Ceylon. 

Mrs Stevens, wife of the Rev. John Stevens, in early life had 
to endure many hardships and privations ; but after her con- 
version to God, she always laid by in store for the Lord's cause 
and people some portion of their weekly income ; and as a 
principal agent in founding the Benevolent Society, Kingswood, 
was thereby the means of doing very much good. During her 
last illness, she often engaged in singing the praises of God. A 
few hours before dying, she said with a glow of pleasure, 
" Jesus Christ and a convoy ! O what delight ! The thought 
of being for ever with Him whom my heart loveth, how delight- 
ful i " and then she exclaimed— 

" O what are all my sufferings here, 
If, Lord, thou count me meet 
With that enraptured host t' appear, 
And worship at thy feet V* 



Hy. 734.] 



and its Associations. 



369 



She then attempted to sing, but her voice failed her ; she added, 
" Well, never mind, I shall soon sing more loud, more sweet, 
and Christ shall be my song ; " and soon afterwards her spirit 
fled to the realms of the blessed. 

The same verse was a source of comfort also to Mrs Mary F. 
West, wife of the Rev. Francis West, and mother of the Rev. F. 
A. West. She would sometimes exclaim, " What a miracle of 
grace if I reach heaven ! " After much suffering she gained the 
haven of rest. 

Two of the most excellent and most loved women of Method- 
ism were two sisters — one was the second wife of the Rev. Henry 
Moore, the other the wife of the estimable and venerable Joseph 
Entwisle. Mrs Entwisle was eminently holy in her life : her 
delicate frame often deprived her of the joy she always ex- 
perienced in the worship of the sanctuary, but her privations 
were sources of spiritual joy to her at home. Her simple 
reliance on God was expressed in the words of the last verse of 
Hymn 734 ; and, without a struggle or even a sigh, she entered 
into the rest prepared for the people of God. 

More than ordinary interest attaches to the memory of the 
aged and venerable Sarah Snowden, of Hull, who was for eighty- 
four years an exemplary and worthy member of the Methodist 
Society. She joined it soon after the first was formed in Hull, in 
1746, and continued steadfast in the faith till she had counted 
nearly the circle of a century of years. She was converted to 
God at the age of sixteen, under the ministry of Mr Hether- 
ington, the first local preacher in Hull. The record of her life, 
though brief comparatively, is one of the most instructive articles 
in the Wesley an Methodist Magazine for 1837. For many 
years she had the privilege of entertaining under her roof Mr 
Wesley, John Nelson, Mr Fletcher, Messrs Pawson, Mather, 
Benson, Griffith, and most of the eminent ministers of the 
connexion, and this she esteemed to be much more of a bless- 
ing conferred upon her than any obligation on those whom she 
so heartily welcomed to her hospitable home. Her regard for 
Mr Wesley was truly filial. In her last lingering affliction, her 
recollections of his kindness and urbanity, as well as of his 
luminous sermons, appeared to survive all intervening events, 
and often in her allusions to the recognition of friends in heaven, 
she pictured to her fancy the peculiar gratification of finding 
most prominent amongst the beatified millions that man of God, 



370 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 734. 



whom she revered as her most honoured friend and spiritual sire. 
Her son Benjamin, who lived with his mother for seventy years, 
says of her, " She did not say great things ; but she lived them." 
Amid painful suffering and languor, she had strong consolation ; 
but her pain subsided as eternity approached ; and on Good- 
Friday 1835, she expressed her confidence in God in the verse 
she had so often quoted — 

"O what are all my sufferings here, 
If, Lord, Thou count me meet 
With that enraptured host t' appear, 
And worship at Thy feet ! * 

and a few hours afterwards the mortal strife terminated, in the 
hundredth year of her pilgrimage. 

Mrs Mary Moulton, eldest daughter of the venerable Thomas 
H. Squance, was born at Point de Galle, Ceylon, in 1819, her 
father being then a missionary. She feared the Lord all her life. 
In 1848 she was married to Mr Joseph Moulton, who has a 
father and two brothers in the Wesleyan ministry. Serving 
God in every sphere of life in which she moved, her last home 
was at Castle Donington, where her literary and religious efforts 
were crowned with success, whilst imparting instruction to 
young ladies intrusted to her care. In her last illness, she was 
often repeating passages of Scripture and verses of hymns. 
The night before she died, she said, " I am on the Rock." She 
was reminded of the joys of paradise, when she replied — 

4< O what are all my sufferings here, 4 
If, Lord," 

but she was unable to complete the verse. A few minutes before 
she expired, she said, " Come, Lord Jesus, come quickly ; " she 
immediately added, "Not my will, but Thine be done," and her 
spirit entered heaven. 

The godly faithfulness and loving heart of Mr Charles Post, 
a bridge-master of Hull, were the means of bringing the late Mr 
John Lidgett to a knowledge of the truth. He had often spoken 
kindly to the young man, and at length secured his attendance 
at a class-meeting ; but the ordeal was too searching, and he fled 
from the room. His faithful monitor followed him, remonstrated, 
and they returned together. From that night his connexion 
with the Methodist Society was uninterrupted till he went to 
join the church of the redeemed. That same man of God was 



Hy. 735.] 



and its Associations. 



371 



the means of obtaining for Mr Lidgett his release from a ship, 
just on the point of sailing, — and that ship was never heard 
of again ! At twenty-seven he suffered shipwreck, and his 
crew, in Russia : they were all spared, whilst other ships' com- 
panies in that storm were all lost. These providences awakened 
in Mr Lidgett's mind a deep sense of gratitude to God, and an 
earnestness in His service which knew no abatement whilst 
health allowed him to be occupied. The poor, the neglected, 
and the sailors were his especial care. When apprised that he 
could not live long, he cheerfully gave up the world, and 
expressed a hope that he might enter the haven in full sail. He 
had sweet foretastes of heaven before he died, and heard some 
of its glories. He watched the sun setting on his last day on 
earth, and then joined his family in singing — 
" O what are all my sufferings here, 

If, Lord, Thou count me meet 
With that enraptured host t' appear, 

And worship at Thy feet ! " 

He then said, " I want to go." He spoke no more, and in full 
triumph he entered paradise. 

Hymn 735. — " Come, let us join our friends above." — A Funeral 

Hy?nn* 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 1 of " Funeral Hymns," 1759. 

This and the two preceding hymns are sublime compositions, 
and first appeared in the poet's second and much enlarged tract 
of " Funeral Hymns*" They embody almost every legitimate 
idea which the human mind can form as to the state, employ- 
ment, and happiness of departed saints, and they are clothed 
in language glorious yet chaste, elegant yet simple, impas- 
sioned yet correct. This hymn expands the idea that saints 
above and saints below, the church militant on earth and the 
church triumphant in heaven, are all one — one family, one army ; 
that even now the intercourse is not totally suspended, but by 
faith we hold communion with those who are gone before. Had 
Charles Wesley composed only these three incomparable hymns, 
he would have conferred a great and enduring benefit on 
the Church of God, and would have immortalised his name as 
a Christian poet. 

A few years ago, a long procession passed down the church 
path from the town of Redruth, pressing round a bier, as 



372 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



[Hy. 735. 



if they would affectionately guard it in the front, flank, and rear, 
and singing as they moved. They were keeping up the custom 
of their Cornish fathers of an evening funeral, and the singing 
of a burial-hymn from the house to the grave. The hymn was — 

" Rejoice for a brother deceased." 
After the solemn service in the church and at the grave, as the 
benediction was pronounced, the devout multitude once more 
lifted up its full and mighty voice, and pressing round the open 
grave, uttered in impressive tone that glowing and impassioned 
hymn, No. 735 — 

" Come, let us join our friends above 
That have obtained the prize, 
And on the eagle wings of love 
To joys celestial rise." 

The swell of the closing appeal of the hymn was thrilling 
Among the singers was one young man, who appeared to be 
rapt while he sang. It seemed as if his music were that of a pure 
spirit How his face kindled as he poured forth the closing 
notes ! One who saw him there under the calm light of the 
evening sun saw indications of his approaching end. Soon 
afterwards he was found on his death-bed ; but he had not lost 
the spirit of that triumphant hymn. To the friend who had seen 
him at the grave, he said, "I am going ; I am going early ; but God 
has brightened my short life into a fall one ! Oh ! those hymns ! 
they have taught me to live in the light of the future ! They 
have been my songs in the house of my pilgrimage. How often 
when I have sung them down in the deep mine has the dark- 
ness been light around me ! Never since I learnt to praise 
God from my heart have I begun^ to work in the rock for 
blasting without stopping to ask, If the hole should go off 
unawares, am I ready for heaven ? Sometimes, sir, there has 
been a shrinking and a doubt, but I have dropped on my knees 
and asked God to bless me before I gave another stroke ; and 
never did I pray in vain ; my prayer has always passed in 
praise. Those blessed hymns have gone bursting from my 
heart and lips as I have toiled at the very point of death ! O 
sir, do you remember our singing at the last funeral ?" " Yes," 
was the reply ; " and some thought then that you would never 
sing again on such an occasion!" " Never sing again, sir! 
Why, I shall sing for ever ! Oh ! that glorious hymn ! let us sing 
it now." And he began at the last verse— 



Hy. 737.] 



and its Associations. 



373 



" O that we now might grasp our Guide ! 
O that the word were given ! 
Come, Lord of hosts, the waves divide, 
And land us — land — me — now in " 

" Heaven !" he would have sang, but ere he could do so he was 
there — he had joined another choir ! 

The conversion of a relative was made the means of awaken- 
ing Thomas Bateson, of Stockport, to a sense of his condition 
as a sinner. The ministry of the Rev. H. S. Hopwood was made 
useful in directing his mind to the Saviour. His Christian 
course after his conversion was steady, consistent, and enduring. 
As a class-leader he walked worthy of his high vocation. His 
last sickness was protracted, but the language of his heart 
was continually, " Thy will be done." Perceiving that the 
parting scene was near, his wife said — 

" Part of the host have cross'd the flood, 
And part are crossing now." 

He tried to finish the hymn, but his strength failed ; he fell 
into sleep, and in that sleep he passed from a suffering to a 
triumphant church. 

Hymn 736.—" Great God, Thy watchful care we bless."— The 

Church the Birthplace of the Saints \ and God's care of it 

Dr Doddridge's, being No. 49 of his hymns, founded on Psalm 
lxxxvii. 5. The first and second verses of the original are left 
out, and the third is altered from " Our Father's watchful care we 
bless." This hymn commences the eighth section of the Supple- 
ment, with the title " Miscellaneous Hymns." 

Hymn 737. — " Thou, who hast in Sion laid." — On Laying the 
Foicndation of a Chapel, 

Agnes Buhner's, written in 1825. 

Mrs Bulmer was the wife of Mr Joseph Bulmer, of Watling 
Street, London. The hymn was written whilst the author was 
on a journey in a coach, and at the special request of the late 
James Wood, Esq., of Manchester, with whose family this 
"elect lady of Methodism" had been on a visit. It was first 
sung at the laying of the foundation-stone of the Wesleyan 
Chapel in Oxford Road and Ancoat's Lane, Manchester, on July 
11, 1825 ; and since that period it has been used on many simi- 
lar occasions. Mrs Bulmer (Miss Collinson before marriage) was 



374 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 742. 



born in London, in the month of August 1775. In early life she 
was admitted into the Society by Mr Wesley, who gave her her 
first ticket. She was a member of Mrs Hester Ann Roger's 
class, was married in 1793. In 1795 she became acquainted 
with Dr and Mrs Adam Clarke, which friendship ripened into 
love for life. In 1 8 15 Mrs Bulmer began to write sacred poetry, 
and for twenty years the Wesley an Magazine and the 
Youth's Instructor abound with her charming contributions. 
These were afterwards collected, and, with a life of her by the 
late Rev. W. M. Bunting, were published, and for some years 
were in great demand. She died in the Isle of Wight, August 
30, 1836, and was buried in the catacombs underneath City 
Road Chapel, London. 

Hymn 738. — u How pleasant, how divinely fair." — The Pleasures 
of Public Worship. 
Dr Watts' version of Psalm lxxxiv., Part I. Two verses of the 
original are left out. 

Hymn 739. — " Father of all, Thy care we bless." — God's Gracious 
Approbation of the Religious Care of our Families. 
Dr Doddridge, being No. 2 of his Hymns, founded on Gen. 
xviii. 19. Several alterations are made in it. 

Hymn 740,— " God of eternal truth and love."— At the Baptism 

of a Child. 

Charles Wesley 1 s, being one of his " Hymns for a Family," 
page 63. The second verse is left out. It is open to question 
how far we are justified in asking for such blessings on an infant 
as are expressed in the third verse. Can a child realise on 
earth "pardon, and holiness, and heaven ?" " Praise " is per- 
fected out of the mouths of " babes and sucklings." 

Hymn 741. — " How large the promise, how divine." — Abraham's 
Blessing on the Gentiles, 

Dr Watts', Hymn 113, Book I., founded on three texts — 
Gen. xxii. 2 ; Rom. xv. 8 ; Mark x. 14. 

Hymn 742. — " Lord of all, with pure intent." — The Presentation 
of Jesus in the Temple. 
Charles Wesley's, left in manuscript at his death, founded on 
Luke ii. 22. 



Hy. 748.] 



and its Associations. 



375 



Hymn 743. — "See Israel's gentle Shepherd stand." — Chris fs 
Condescending Regard to Little Children. 

Dr Doddridge's, No. 198 of his Hymns, founded on Mark 
x, 24, with two verses left out. 

Hymn 744. — "The Saviour, when to heaven He rose."— The 
Institution of a Gospel Ministry from Christ. 

Dr Doddridge's, written for an ordination service, and forms 
No. 289 of his Hymns, founded on Eph. iv. 11, 12. The first 
verse of the original is left out, and the hymn is otherwise 
altered. 

Hymn 745. — "Father, live, by all things fear'd." — To the 

Trinity. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 1 01. It is also in the same author's hymns entitled 
" Gloria Patri," 1746. 

Hymn 746. — " Father of mercies, in Thy word." — The Excellence 
of the Holy Scriptures. 

Miss Ann Steele. The original has twelve stanzas, of which 
seven are left out, 

Hymn 747. — "Jesus, Thy servants bless." — Preaching the 
Kingdom of God. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his " Scripture Hymns " left in 
manuscript, founded on Acts xviii. 31. 

Hymn 748.—" O God ! how often hath Thine ear."— The Cove- 
nant with God Renewed. 

William Maclardie Bunting's. It was written when the author 
was a youth of only fifteen years, and was first published in the 
Methodist Magazine for January 1824, page 72, with the sig- 
nature of " Juvenis." This is the only one of many hymns of 
great excellence from the pen of the same author which is 
found in the " Methodist Hymn-Book," and this was inserted by 
the desire of the Rev. Dr Bunting, and almost against the wishes 
of his son, who, as he informed the writer in person, thought it 
not worthy of a place in such a collection. About forty of Mr 
Bunting's hymns will be found in the late Rev. Dr Leifchild's 



376 



The Methodist Hymn- Book [Hy. 748. 



collection of " Original Hymns," and amongst them a revised 
copy of this Covenant Hymn. A copy of that revision of the 
hymn will also be found in the Local Preachers' Magazine 
for January 1869, page 23. In the year 1859, a few years before 
the author's death, he revised it again, and the alterations, 
though not numerous, are important ; this being the final 
revision, we are permitted to give the hymn as last corrected by 
its accomplished, devout, and scholarly author. The first word 
in the first verse is changed ; a comma is added in the third 
line ; the third word in the third verse is changed from " of" to 
" to ; 99 and in the fourth and fifth verses several important 
emendations will be found — 

" My God ! how often hath Thine ear 
. To me in willing mercy bow'd ! 
While, worshipping Thine altar near, 
Lowly I wept, and strongly vow'd : 
But ah ! the feebleness of man ! 
Have I not vow'd and wept in vain ? 
" Return, O Lord of hosts, return ! 
Behold Thy servant in distress ; 
My faithlessness again I mourn ; 

Again forgive my faithlessness ; 
And in Thine arms my spirit take, 
And bless me for the Saviour's sake. 
In pity to the soul Thou lov'st, 

Now bid the sin Thou hat'st expire ; 
Let me desire what Thou approv'st, — 

Thou dost approve what I desire ; 
And Thou wilt deign to call me Thine, 
And I will dare to call Thee mine. 
" This day Thy covenant I sign, 

The bond of mercy, grace, and peace ; 
Nor can I doubt its truth divine, 

Since seal'd with Jesu's blood it is : 
That blood 1 plead, that blood alone, 
And make the cov'nant peace mine own. 

" Oh that my love no more may know 
Or change, or interval, or end, — 
Help me in all Thy paths to go, 

And evermore my voice attend, 
And gladden me with answers mild, 
And commune, Father, with Thy child ! " 



Hy. 748.] 



and its Associations. 



377 



Every alteration will be its own commendation. We may, 
however, give an extract from a letter of the author's respecting 
this hymn from the Local Preachers' Magazine, just quoted, 
which is interesting. Writing to Mr Parker, Mr Bunting says : 
— " I wrote the hymn out of the fulness of personal feeling, 
while yet a youth at school ; and I was so ashamed of it as a 
literary production, that I could not yield it up to my father for 
publication in the Magazine under my then recognised sobri- 
quet [Alec], but disguised the authorship under the apologetic 
signature of Juvenis. When Mr Watson, with whom I lived, 
did me the honour to consult me about the selection of hymns 
for the Supplement, and decided to introduce this hymn, it was 
entirely on his own responsibility, and against my strong sense 
of its unworthiness. When dear Dr Leifchild asked me for 
a hymn on dedication to God, I took this to save time and 
trouble, and from sheer dissatisfaction with what I thought feeble- 
ness in one place, obscurity in another, and so on, reconstructed 
it as it appears in his collection." 

This pleasant sketch of the history of the hymn will have 
prepared the way for a few particulars respecting its author. 
William M. Bunting was the eldest son of the Rev. Jabez 
Bunting, D.D., and Sarah Maclardie Bunting. He was born in 
Manchester, in November 1805, and was specially dedicated to 
God from his birth. He was educated at W T oodhouse Grove 
School, at Kingswood, and finally at St Saviour's Grammar 
School, Southwark. His conversion is traced to his medita- 
tions on the words, " Him that cometh unto me I will in no 
wise cast out," whilst passing over Old London Bridge, in his 
seventeenth year. In his nineteenth year he entered the Wes- 
leyan ministry, and for a quarter of a century he occupied a 
most distinguished place in the body. For many years he was 
the last surviving author of those whose hymns appear in the 
Methodist Hymn-book. Between the years 1820 and 1840, 
many of his poetical compositions appeared in the Wesleyan 
Magazine. He was a man of high intellectual and moral 
worth, of deep, sincere, and unassuming piety, and of fine 
catholic spirit. We had the privilege of his personal friendship, 
and knew, from delightful intercourse, something of his high 
moral and spiritual worth. He died somewhat suddenly, at 
Highgate Rise, November 13, 1866, aged sixty-one years, and 
is interred in Highgate Cemetery. We are glad to know that 



378 The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hv. 750. 



his poetical works, with a sketch of his life, may be expected 
shortly to appear, written by one who knew and loved him. 

Hymn 749. — "O how shall a sinner perform/ — In Tempta- 

tion. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 111 in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1749, vol. i. Two lines are altered. 

Hymn 750. — " O happy day that fix'd my choice." — Rejoicing 
in our Covenant Engagements to God. 

Dr Doddridge's, being No. 23 in his Hymns, founded on 
1 Chron. xv. 15, with one verse altered. It is a hymn often used 
to close the social means of grace, especially class and band 
meetings. Mr Montgomery has written concerning it, " Blessed 
is the man who can take the words of this hymn and make 
them his own from similar experience." 

In very early life Hugh Browne, of Donaghadee, Ireland, 
was the subject of deep religious impressions ; but it was 
during a revival in Belfast, after he came of age, that he 
found peace through believing in Jesus. The death of his 
father seemed to hasten his own ; and during his short illness 
he found that Christ was the Rock of his salvation. Whilst 
exulting in a clearly-manifested pardon, he exclaimed — 

" O happy day that fix'd my choice 

On Thee, my Saviour and my God I 
Well may this glowing heart rejoice, 
And tell its raptures all abroad." 

His last words were in testimony of his triumph over sin by the 
blood of Jesus. 

Under the preaching of Thomas Riley, sergeant-major in the 
7th Dragoon Guards, at Colchester, in 181 1, William Balls was 
enabled to believe for salvation. The witness of the spirit of 
his adoption he retained through life, and his name was in the 
first place as a local preacher in the Colchester circuit. Subse- 
quently he was appointed a class-leader and circuit-steward, 
His piety was sincere, enlightened, and elevated, and he was an 
unwearied labourer in the Lord's vineyard. His favourite 
hymn through life was No. 346, " For ever here my rest shall 
be," &c. During the night before his death, he said, "Behold* 



Hv. 752 ] 



and its Associations. 



379 



God is my salvation ! Praise, praise, talk of Jesus ! " On the 
day he died, he repeated, with deep feeling — 
" He drew me, and I follow'd on, 

Charm'd to confess the voice divine." 

His last testimony was, " Thanks be to God, who giveth me 
the victory.'' 

Hymn 751. — "The promise of my Father's love." — The New 
Testament in the Blood of Christ is the New Covenant sealed, 

Dr Watts', Hymn 3, Book HI., 1707. 

In early life Charlotte Cullen (afterwards Mrs Slater, of 
Sheffield, and sister-in-law of the Rev. Barnard Slater) found 
her chief pleasure in the ball-room and at the card-table ; but 
under a sermon preached by the Rev. Robert Bryant, at Mil- 
denhall, from " Prepare to meet thy God, O Israel," she was so 
deeply convinced of her sinful condition, that she had no rest 
till she found it in sins forgiven ; and in her seventeenth year 
she joined the Methodist Society. As governess in the family 
of the Rev. Thomas Padman, she had many spiritual advan- 
tages. Afterwards, it was the intense joy and delight of her 
heart to learn that her mother, sister, and other members of the 
family had obtained the blessing of justification by faith in Jesus 
Christ. She herself strove long till she obtained the blessing 
of entire sanctification. In the enjoyment of this happy expe- 
rience she lived, till, at the age of forty, she exchanged mortality 
for life eternal. During her last affliction, which was painfully 
severe, her confidence in God was unwavering. When the end 
drew nigh, the Rev. John Burton administered to her the sacra- 
ment of the Lord's Supper, after which she desired her family 
to sing what had long been her favourite hymn, commencing — ■ 
' The promise of my Fathers love 

Shall stand for ever good,' 
He said ; and gave His soul to death, 

And seal'd the grace with blood. " 
With peculiar ardour and delight, she joined in singing the 
whole hymn. During the service, she was filled with the pre- 
sence of God, and her latest moments were tranquil and 
happy. 

Hymn 752.— " From Jesu's sacrifice."— The Lord's Supper. 
Charles Wesley's, being one of his hymns left in manuscript. 



3§o 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 756. 



Hymn 753.—" Let all who truly bear."— The Lord's Supper^ as 
it is a Memorial of the Sufferings and Death of Christ. 

Charles Wesley's, being No. 4 of his " Hymns on the Lord's 
Supper." The original is in four stanzas of eight lines each, the 
half of each verse being left out. 

The Rev. Charles Wesley has been charged recently by the 
Ritualistic party in the Church of England with holding and 
teaching in many of his Hymns on the Lord's Supper the doctrine 
of the Real Presence, and they claim him as one of their best 
advocates. To make good this charge, one of the publishers for 
the Ritualists has reproduced some of Mr Wesley's " Hymns on 
the Lord's Supper." It should be remembered that these hymns 
were written in the very early part of the poet's life, and near to 
the time when he was an avowed High Churchman ; a legal 
Christian without Christ, a Ritualist without spiritual life, 
living in the letter only of the law, not having known the Spirit 
which giveth life. Charles Wesley's after-life, teaching, preach- 
ing, and poetry, demonstrate the opposite of all this, from and 
after the year 1745. The Rev. Dr Rigg, in an article in the 
London Quarterly, July 1868, has demonstrated that the teach- 
ing, preaching, and poetry of both John and Charles Wesley 
were thoroughly Presbyterian, evangelical, and spiritual from 
1745 to the end of their lives. 

HYMN 754.—" Prostrate, with eyes of faith I see." — For the 
Lord's Supper. 

Charles Wesley's, one of his hymns left in manuscript. It is 
copied into Russell's Collection. 

Hymn 755. — " Lord, Thou hast bid Thy people pray." — For the 

King and Royal Family. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his " Hymns written for Times 
of Trouble and Persecution," published in 1744. The original 
has six verses, two of which are left out. The time of trouble 
alluded to was a.d. i 743. 

Hymn 756.—" Brethren in Christ, and well-beloved."— -On the 

Admission of any Perso7i into Society. 

Charles Wesley's, from " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 169 ; the second verse being left out. 



Hy. 757] 



and its Associations. 



381 



Hymn 757. — " Awake, my soul, and with the sun." — A Morning 

Hymn. 

Thomas Ken, D.D., Bishop of Bath and Wells. The three 
compositions by this eminent man of God, the Morning, Even- 
ing, and Midnight Hymns, were first published in 1675 at the 
end of the " Manual of Prayers, " written for the use of the boys 
at Winchester School, in which the Bishop himself was educated. 
The original is in fourteen stanzas, nine of which are left out. 
This morning hymn has undergone many changes by many 
hands ; some, alas ! who could but little enter into the devout 
spirit of the pious author. Well might James Montgomery say 
of these three hymns, " Had the Bishop endowed three hospitals, 
he might have been less a benefactor to posterity." 

Dr Ken having been one of the proscribed seven bishops, but 
little was known of him for many years. .He was born at Little 
Berkhampsted in July 1637. After his ordination, he was made 
successively chaplain to the Princess of Orange and to Charles 
II. He was consecrated Bishop of Bath and Wells in 1684. 
James II. sent him, with six other bishops, to the Tower, but 
popular feeling secured their release after a trial. At the 
Revolution he declined to swear allegiance to William III., and 
retired into private life, spending his remaining days in the 
magnificent mansion of an endeared friend, at Longleat, Wilts, 
where he died in March 1710, and he was buried in Frome 
churchyard : a neat tomb covers his remains. No single 
stanza of poetry ever written has attained to greater popularity 
than the last verse of the Morning-Hymn, which is known all 
the world over as The Doxology — 

" Praise God, from whom all blessings flow." 

" Bishop Ken's well-known doxology," writes James Montgo- 
mery, " is a masterpiece at once of amplification and compres- 
sion : amplification on the burden, ' Praise God,' repeated in 
each line ; compression by exhibiting God as the object of praise 
in every view in which we can imagine praise due to Him — 
praise for all His blessings ; yea, for all blessings, none coming 
from any other source ; praise by every creature, specifically 
invoked, 4 here below/ and in ( heaven above praise to Him in 
each of the characters wherein He has revealed Himself in His 
word — ' Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.' Yet this comprehensive 



382 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 757. 



verse is sufficiently simple, that by it ' out of the mouth of babes 
and sucklings' praise might be ' perfected ;' and it appears so 
easy, that one is tempted to think hundreds of the sort might be 
made without trouble. The reader has only to try, and he will 
be quickly undeceived ; though the longer he tries the more 
difficult he will find the task to be." 

This glorious doxology has afforded comfort to many depart- 
ing saints, as well as it has fittingly expressed the joy of the 
Lord's people in ten thousand instances when a new-born soul 
has entered into the liberty of the children of God. One in- 
stance, of which we have a distinct personal recollection, is 
worthy of note. Bridgehouses Wesleyan Chapel had been 
opened, and at night the preacher was William Dawson. The 
seed sown during the day had been accompanied by many ear- 
nest and faithful prayers : and after the evening service the body 
of the chapel and the side galleries had each its separate prayer- 
meeting. These were continued till near ten o'clock at night, 
when the praying souls and the seeking sinners adjourned to the 
school-room under the chapel, and there sat William Dawson, 
wrapped in his drab greatcoat, for it was winter-time, counting 
and recording the trophies of that day's spiritual warfare. Be- 
fore eleven o'clock that Sabbath evening, the doxology had been 
repeated in earnest joyful song thirty-five times. A twelve miles' 
walk, through the midnight hours, and in the snows of a cold 
February, did not dissipate the blessedness of the memories of 
that day, and they are fresh and fragrant on the mind of the 
w T riter after the lapse of more than thirty years. 

An early religious training was followed, in the experience of 
Phillis Downes, of Salford, by her conversion to God at the age 
of seventeen. From that day, and for forty years, she had not 
a doubt of her acceptance with God. In 181 1 she experienced 
a deeper work of grace, and to the end of life testified to the 
entire sanctification of her nature. On the morning of her last 
day on earth, she said, whilst struggling for breath, " This is 
the last struggle. I have often sung, and now it is the lan- 
guage of my heart — 

* Let it not my Lord displease, 

That I would die to be His guest ; 
Jesus, Master, seal my peace, 
And take me to Thy breast.' " 

Shortly afterwards, she exclaimed — 



Hv. 757] 



and its Associations. 



383 



fi Praise God, from whom all blessings flow." 

These were the last words she uttered distinctly ; but " praise 99 
was upon her lips when the power of utterance had failed. 

Where the Spirit of the Lord is there is liberty. The mind 
of Elizabeth Hudson, of Hitchin, was awakened to a sense of its 
condition before God at the age of sixteen, but it was not till 
she was twenty years old that she found the Lord. The Method* 
ists worshipped in a barn ; she longed to join them, for she was 
seeking the Lord with all her heart. Her friends forbade her ; 
so out of her window she looked at the lights in the rude barn 
where the people of God were gathered for worship. She wept and 
prayed, and the Lord showed her His mercy. That night her 
burden was removed, and she was able to rejoice in the liberty 
of the children of God. Her heart was filled with love to God 
and to all around her. Soon afterwards she heard the Methodist 
preacher at another village, and in the fulness of her joy invited 
the preacher to tea at her father's house. She made it a matter 
of earnest prayer that her opposing parents might receive the 
man of God. He came and was kindly welcomed. After tea, 
the parents were invited to the preaching. The service ended, 
the parents invited the preacher to stay all night. From that day 
that house w r as the home of the Methodist preachers at Baldock, 
and from that day Methodism began to flourish there. A 
Society was formed, and from that Society several have gone 
forth to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ in the ranks of 
the Methodist ministry. Mrs Hudson became a class-leader, 
and her husband a useful local preacher. For twenty years 
they were the chief support of Methodism at Baldock. They 
removed to Hitchin ; here also Mrs Hudson was the principal 
instrument in the establishment of Methodism, and a prosper- 
ous Society has since sprung up there also. Thus one devoted 
godly woman founded two Societies of Methodists, and lived 
to see them enjoying considerable prosperity. This work 
accomplished, a preacher's house built, and a Wesleyan 
minister resident in the town, she said to her Christian 
friends, " Lord, now lettest Thou Thy servant depart in peace, for 
mine eyes have seen Thy salvation/' Her work was done. 
Shortly afterwards typhus fever set in, and when she found out 
the fatal nature of her disease, she rejoiced that she was so near 
the " fair haven." To a friend who inquired if she was happy, 
she said, " Oh, yes ! I feel more than I can express and in 



3^4 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 758. 



the evening, waving her hand in an ecstasy of joy, she ex- 
claimed — 

u Praise God, from whom all blessings flow ; 
Praise Him, all creatures here below ; 
Praise Him above, ye heavenly host ; 
Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.'* 

Her last words were, " Christ is precious, and I long to be 
with Him ; n and in her sixtieth year she joined the church 
triumphant. 

When persecution was a sure consequence of becoming a 
Methodist, John West, of Mark, Ban well, was converted, and at 
once joined the Society. His heart was right, and no fear of 
man intimidated him. For several years his attendance at the 
means of grace was so regular, that it was a common saying in 
the village, " If there is no one else at the chapel, Mr West will 
be there." He attended the house of God till, in the seventy- 
eighth year of his age, he received a peaceful summons 
to his Father's house above. Some of his last words were, 
u Glory be to God, I am come to the mount ! I am filled with 
glory and with God." He then made an effort to sing — 
" Praise God, from whom all blessings flow ; 
Praise Him, all creatures here below, &c., 
and he added, " Tell the friends, Jesus is a precious Saviour." 
In this happy frame he continued till his voice was lost in 
death. 

For more than thirty years, Letitia Oakes, of Brompton, 
Rochester, adorned her Christian profession by exemplary love 
to the means of grace, and to the ambassadors of Christ, and 
also by her blameless life and great liberality. For several 
years she was confined to her room by extreme feebleness, but 
her cheerful piety testified to her submission to her heavenly 
Father's will. Just before the "weary wheels of life stood still," 
she said, " Not a wave of trouble rolls across my peaceful 
breast," and, without apparent suffering, she gradually sunk, 
literally dying with the unfinished accents of — 

" Praise God, from whom all blessings flow," 
lingering on her lips, at the advanced age of eighty-five. 

Hymn 758. — "GlorytoThee, my God, this night." — An Evening 

Hymn. 

Thomas Ken, D.D., Bishop of Bath and Wells ; forms part of 



Hy. 760,] and its Associations. 



385 



his " Evening Hymn," 1675. The original has twelve verses, 
seven of which are left out, and the first and third are altered 

Endeared to multitudes of Christians, this hymn was the 
dying song of Roger Miller, once a drunken copperplate printer 
of London, afterwards a city missionary in Broad wall, Lambeth 
where he laboured long and usefully amongst the profligate 
and destitute. On the death of his mother, in 1847, Mr Miller 
left London for Manchester, to attend her funeral. It was 
near midnight, when, as the train approached Wolverton, an 
accident occurred : the train ran off the lines, and several were 
killed. Mr Miller had a few moments before united with the 
other passengers in singing the " Evening Hymn," that they 
might close the day with a devotional song. The praises of the 
passengers arose amidst the noise of the rushing train, but most 
seemed heartily to join. How appropriate the words — 

" Teach me to live, that I may dread 

The grave as little as my bed ; 

Teach me to die, that so I may 

Rise glorious at the awful day." 
The music of their voices became, with one, at the least, in that 
company, blended with the hallelujahs of the redeemed, for 
Roger Miller was hurried in an instant to glory. 

HYMN 759. — " O Thou that hangedst on the tree." 
„ 760. — " Canst Thou reject our dying prayer?" 
Hymns for Condemned Malefactors. 

Charles Wesley's, forming together No. 100 in " Hymns and 
Sacred Poems," 1749, vol. i. ; founded on Psalm lxxix. 11. The 
original is in fourteen stanzas ; the second and third are left out 
in the first part ; the second part commences with the eighth 
verse, and the three last are left out. The unceasing labour of 
the brothers Wesley in trying to benefit the wretched beings in 
our prisons is manifested in the hymns and prayers which the 
poet of Methodism wrote for those outcasts of men. Yet of 
these even he has left evidence of the rescue of many ; and in 
this hymn the great cardinal doctrine of our holy religion, 
Faith, is clearly stated and strongly enforced. 

Mr Bunting has appended several notes to this hymn, first 
part. Note 1. — " Mr Frankland at K[entish] T[own], after we had 
administered at the Lord's Table, December 3, 1865. He had 
preached from 1 John ii. 2." This service seems to have called 

2 B 



336 



The Methodist Hymn-Book [Hy. 765. 



attention to this hymn. Note 2. — Line 1, verse 2, to the word 
" outward" this note is appended, — " Even — not, even the pre- 
tence or appearance of righteousness." Note 3. — The third verse 
is emended as follows — the italics mark the corrections : — 
" Save us by grace, through faith alone, 
A faith Thou wilt Thyself impart ; 
The faith that by its fruit is known, 
The faith that purines the heart." 

The fourth verse is entirely marked out, as marring the harmony 
of the hymn. 

Hymn 761. — " Lord of the wide, extensive main." 
„ 762. — " Infinite God, Thy greatness spann'd." 
To be Sung at Sea. 

Charles Wesley's, from "Hymns and Sacred Poems," 1740, 
page 31. The original is in ten verses, and not divided. It was. 
probably written in 1735, previously to the poet and his brother 
John sailing to America with General Oglethorpe and the Mora- 
vian settlers. The language of the second verse indicates with 
tolerable plainness what was the occasion of the hymn being 
written. 

Hymn 763. — " Lord, whom winds and seas obey." — On Going 
on Shipboard. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his hymns left in manuscript, 
and probably written on one of the occasions when the poet was 
leaving Bristol for Wales, or London, or Cornwall. 

Hymn 764. — " Lord of earth, and air, and sea." — On Going on 

Shipboard. 

Charles Wesley's, being one of his hymns left in manuscript, 
and probably written at the same time as the preceding. 

Hymn 765. — "How are Thy servants blest, O Lord!" — A 
Thanksgiving for Deliverance from Imminent Danger. 

Joseph Addison's, and originally published in No. 489 of the 
Spectator. Its admission into the Methodist Collection when 
the Supplement was made was by a special favour, as the limp- 
ing of the rhyme had almost caused its exclusion. It is some- 
times called " The Traveller's Hymn." It was originally written 
in the first person singular, and is described as made " by a 



Hy. 769.] and its Associations, 387 

gentleman at the conclusion of his travels." It consists of ten 
stanzas, the third, fourth, fifth, and sixth being left out. The 
hymn is fine in sentiment, and elegant in language, but de- 
fective in Christianity : in it no reference is made, directly or 
indirectly, to the Redeemer of mankind, man's only hope for 
salvation, and the source of all our deliverances from danger and 
harm. In this respect it forms a strong contrast to the three 
hymns preceding it, which are by Charles Wesley. 

Hymn 766. — " How many pass the guilty night." — A Midnight 

Hymn, 

Charles Wesley's, being the first of his " Hymns for the 
Watchnight," 1742. As such it appears in " Hymns and Sacred 
Poems," 1742, page 135 ; where the first line reads thus : " Oft 
have we pass'd the guilty night/' The fourth verse is left out. 

Hymn 767. — "Join, all ye ransom'd sons of grace." — For the 
Watchnight. 

Charles Wesley's, being the last of his eleven hymns for the 
Watchnight. The fourth verse is left out. 

Hymn 768.—" Out of the depth of self-despair.'*-— Psalm cxxx. 

Charles Wesley's, being his version of Psalm cxxx. It appears 
in " Psalms and Hymns/' enlarged edition, 1743. 

Hymn 769. — " I give immortal praise." — A Song of Praise to 
the Blessed Trinity. 

Dr Watts', Hymn 28, Book III., 1707. 

This ends the Notes on the " Collection of Hymns for the Use 
of the People called Methodists." 



There are two other hymns which have been so extensively 
used on death-beds by Wesleyans, that a work of this nature 
would be incomplete without some notice being taken of them. 
For more than fifty years, they will both be found quoted fre- 
quently in the biographical department of the Wesleyan Maga- 
zine, from which source they have both become so widely known, 



388 The Methodist Hymn-Book 



that not a few believe that they form part of the Collection of 
Hymns. The first of these is known by the following lines — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 

The original has the title " Hymns for Believers," and forms 
No. 130 in Charles Wesley's " Hymns and Sacred Poems," 
1749, vol. i. It contains eighteen verses, the first five of which 
are as follows : 

1. " All praise to the Lamb ! 

Accepted I am, 
I am bold to believe on my Jesus's name. 

2. ' 4 Strength and righteousness, 

And pardon and peace, 
In the Lord, my Redeemer, I surely possess. 

3. "In Thee I confide, 

Thy blood is applied ; 
For me Thou hast suffer'd, for me Thou has f . died, 

4. " My peace it is made, 

My ransom is paid, 
My soul on Thy [perfect] atonement is stay'd. 

5. " Not a doubt can arise 

To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 

The fifth is the only verse which is generally known ; and the 
first line of that usually appears in an altered form, as indicated 
above. 

For twenty-two years, Mrs Nelson shared the toils of her 
husband, the Rev. John Nelson, in the itinerancy of Methodism, 
nearly half of which were spent in the West Indies, where she 
laboured to be useful by meeting classes, teaching in the schools, 
visiting the sick, and by other works of mercy. During the last 
few months of her life, the increased spirituality of her mind 
was an indication of the deeper fervour of her devotion, and her 
growing fitness for the rest which remaineth for the people of 
God. At Huddersfield, she was suddenly seized with paralysis, 
and survived the attack but twelve days ; but her mind was at 
peace, and she manifested unhesitating reliance on Christ, waiting 
the Lord's pleasure with calm fortitude, and with a joyful hope 



and its Associations* 



389 



of glory. No doubt or temptation disturbed her last hours : 
more than once she exclaimed — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 

Thus she died in the full triumph of joyful faith and hope. 

At the age of sixteen, Mrs Horton, the wife of the Rev. 
William Horton, experienced the saving grace of God, and 
became a member of the Methodist Society. In 1820, she was 
married to a Wesleyan minister, and with her husband devoted 
all her energies to the service of God in the missionary field. 
In Van Diemen's land, and also in New South Wales, her 
talents and influence were consecrated to the service of Christ. 
To the female inmates of the jail and hospital at Hobart Town, 
she regularly imparted religious instruction. As a class-leader, 
she was useful and beloved ; and as a visitor of the sick and 
dying, she was pre-eminently successful in promoting the good 
of souls. Her health, always delicate, failed her in the foreign 
service. After her return home she rallied a little, but 
her strength was again much reduced, and for a time her 
spiritual enjoyments were dimmed, and she was beginning to 
doubt her acceptance with God, when, after an evening of 
prayer with the Rev. W. H. Clarkson, she recovered her sense 
of the divine favour, and the joy which followed was ecstatic. 
At one time she expressed her feelings in these words, " I am 
so unspeakably happy : Oh, help me to praise the Lord ! I must 
praise Him : Oh, how good the Lord is to me, who am so un- 
worthy ! Yes, precious Jesus, I can say — 

4 Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes/ 

Oh, the blessedness of the saints ! I shall be with Jesus to 
all eternity." She had always valued Wesley's hymns as a 
rich treasury of devotional sentiment ; and now she found in 
them words which exactly expressed her religious feelings. She 
died saying, " I have now nothing to do but to praise God to all 
eternity." 

Amongst the members forming the first Methodist class at 
Kingston, Jamaica, was William Harris, a native of Charles- 
town, who came from America about the time of the war, 1780. 



39° 



The Methodist Hymn-Boole 



Soon as Dr Coke arrived in the West Indies, Mr Harris and 
his wife waited on the Doctor, and offered their assistance to 
him, and thus became the first Methodists in the island. 
Having found peace in believing, Harris became the first 
leader ; and before Dr Coke left the island, eight members had 
joined the class. This humble coloured Christian lived to see 
Methodism extend in the colony, until there were nearly eight 
hundred leaders, and twenty thousand members in Society 
there. For years he travelled with the missionaries on their 
preaching-excursions, and twice he accompanied Dr Coke 
through the country. For more than fifty years he held fast his 
confidence in God, and laboured without ceasing to bring souls 
to a knowledge of sins forgiven. During seven years of fierce 
persecution, when the chapels were shut up, and they were 
prohibited from meeting for divine worship, he continued to 
hold private meetings on his premises, at night, and in the 
dark, to prevent detection ; thus was the Society kept together, 
and many converts were added to them. He continued to lead 
a class to the end of his days ; and when honoured age and in- 
firmity laid him aside from active service, he maintained his 
confidence in God unshaken. Shortly before he died, he en- 
couraged some of the members of his class who came to see 
him, by exhorting them to hold on, and hold fast their con- 
fidence, exclaiming — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes. " 
Thus happily passed away this venerable servant of the Lord, 
aged ninety-six years. 

The age of womanhood was reached by Lois Hickson before 
she saw the evil of a life of worldliness. Attending the Methodist 
preaching at Leek, the sermon, one of great faithfulness, was as 
a message of God to her soul, and she gave her heart to the 
Lord. Becoming the wife of the Rev. Thomas Hickson, she 
spent ten years in the foreign mission field, and many others 
most usefully in the work at home. As a class-leader, she was 
most acceptable, watching over her members with deep solici- 
tude. She prayed for each member daily by name in her 
closet, and would not allow any of them to remain in a doubt- 
ful state of mind as to their acceptance with God, without 
faithful admonition and prayerful promptings. She aimed to 



and its Associations. 



391 



encourage the young to seek to know their sins forgiven from a 
conviction that this knowledge was absolutely necessary to the 
prosperity of the cause of God. The meetings of her class were 
times of refreshing from the presence of the Lord ; and she saw 
her members growing in grace, and in the knowledge of our 
Lord Jesus Christ. She sought to have a clear and full know- 
ledge of the inspired volume, and made herself familiar with Mr 
Wesley's notes, and the commentaries of Mr Benson and Dr 
Adam Clarke. These helps contributed much to the solidity and 
richness of religious experience ; and she became an example 
of all good works. Once she was suddenly tempted to doubt 
her confidence in God, but by a resolute exercise of faith, the 
snare was broken, and she exclaimed, " Satan, I am the Lord's ! 
I am the Lord's ! " and then with much feeling she added — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 

With these words she often baffled the tempter's power, and 
maintained her confidence in God. She died saying, " Lord 
Jesus, receive my spirit." 

A career of about thirty years of sin and folly was suddenly 
ended one day in a very providential manner. Richard 
Cousins, a poor man, in the pursuit of worldly pleasure visited a 
relative at Tetney, Grimsby, at the time of the village fair. It 
became necessary for Richard to sleep at a neighbour's house 
with a man who was a stranger to him. Before retiring to 
bed, the stranger said, " Young man, I will read a chapter," 
and read Romans viii. Prayer followed the reading, and the 
spirit of conviction followed the prayer ; so that Richard said 
to himself, "If this man is right, I am wrong." He sought 
earnestly for pardon, and found peace at a village prayer-meet- 
ing. For seventy-one years he continued a faithful and con- 
sistent member of the Methodist Society, and a diligent class- 
leader. He lived to enter on his one-hundredth year. Two 
days before his death, a friend visiting him found him seated 
in the corner of his room, his body bent with pain, till his head 
rested on his knees. To the question, " Richard, I want to 
know from yourself if there is any cloud on your sky ?" lifting 
up his hands, worn with a century of hard toil, and with a most 
benignant smile, he answered by repeating the verse — 



392 The Methodist Hymn-Book 



" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 

Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 
He died, as he had lived, in favour with God and man. 

A class-leader in Ireland took his two daughters with him to 
his Sunday-class ; but, as they were young, he passed the 
children by without any remark. On the second Sunday, one 
of the girls, feeling deeply' that she was passed by, burst into 
tears, and sobbed out, in the depth of her sorrow, the conviction 
she felt of her sinfulness. That work of grace was carried on 
till Ann Hardy realised a sense of sins forgiven, and joined the 
Methodist Society. She was afterwards married to the Rev. 
James Home, and went out with him to Jamaica. She very soon 
fell a victim to the climate, but lived long enough to show forth 
the blessedness of that grace by which she had been saved. On 
being asked the state of her mind, after the physician had said 
recovery was hopeless, she said, " I hope He will finish the work 
He has begun and after a little pause, she added- — 
" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 

Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 
She died very happy ; and her memory was so precious to the 
coloured people amongst whom she had lived, that they col- 
lected ^43 to obtain from England a tombstone to be erected 
over her grave. 

After an itinerant ministry of thirty-one years, the Rev. Wil- 
liam Nother retired as a supernumerary ; but he continued to 
labour till his strength entirely failed. During his last afflic- 
tion, which was long and heavy, his mind was kept in perfect 
peace- As the end drew nigh, in reply to the question, What 
was the state of his mind ? he said — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies," &c. 

and added — 

" My God is reconciled, 
His pardoning voice I hear." 
Here he stopped, his breath failed him. Thus peacefully he 
entered into rest. 

Early in life Richard R. Mole, Wesleyan minister, experienced 
the converting power of divine grace, becoming soon afterwards 
a local preacher; and in 1818 he began to itinerate. He 



and its Associations. 



393 



laboured with much acceptance and success, till his health 
failed, in 1839. He preached his last sermon on the day the 
Centenary of Methodism was celebrated. His health rapidly 
decayed, and, as his end drew nigh, he was peaceful and 
happy, giving his experience, in reply to a friend, in the 
language of Charles Wesley's hymn — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 

To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes. 7 ' 
His last testimony was, that he felt that the blood of Jesus Christ 
cleansed him from all sin, and that he rested on the Rock of Ages. 

At the age of seventeen, Elizabeth, daughter of the Rev, 
Thomas Staton, Wesleyan minister, gave her heart to the 
Lord ; and during the ten years of her life which followed, she 
served the Lord with full purpose of heart. A long and painful 
illness tried her severely ; but her confidence in God was un- 
wavering. As the end of life drew nigh, amidst much suffering, 
she said, " All is clear ; I have no doubt, no uncertainty. I 
cling to the cross ; I am sure I am going to heaven" Imme- 
diately afterwards, she added — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 

To darken the skies," 
and then peacefully entered into the better land. 

At the age of thirteen, Mrs Brayshay, of Hull, received her 
first ticket of membership as a Methodist from the Rev. Joseph 
Benson, and for fifty-six years she continued a member of that 
Society, and walked continuously in the light of God's counte- 
nance. During much suffering, her mind was kept in peace ; 
and when told that all hope of recovery was gone, her cheerful 
reply was, " Is not that blessed news?" Almost her last words 
were — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment the Lord from my eyes." 
A pious parentage is the gift of God. Of all the blessings of 
life, this is one of the most prominent. It was the privilege of 
Maria Ann Vickers (who afterwards became the wife of the Rev. 
William M. Punshon) to share in early life in this rich inherit- 
ance. Her early days were marked by the bloom of health, a 
lively disposition, and all that makes childhood happy. Her 
early religious life was marked by doubt and want of spiritual 



394 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



comfort ; but at the age of twenty-three she accompanied her 
mother to a Christian fellowship-meeting, when, with a trem- 
bling spirit, she confessed her sinfulness, and entreated the 
prayers of the Lord's people. The Saviour appeared to her in 
mercy. She saw Jesus Christ evidently set forth crucified 
before her eyes, and resting on His atonement, she lost the bur- 
den of sin, she believed on Christ, and was made unspeakably 
happy. She remained on her knees four hours wrestling for 
liberty, and resolved not to rise till she realised the blessing, 
which God vouchsafed to her a few minutes after midnight. 
The change was instantaneous and glorious, and was at once 
manifest in her countenance, her conversation, and her life ; 
and from that time to the end of her pilgrimage, the class-meet- 
ing became to her a welcome and blessed means of grace. For 
three years her labours in the Sabbath-school, and in other 
spheres of Christian service, bore testimony to the intensity of 
her love and gratitude to God, and her desire to benefit the 
souls of those around her. For about ten years, as the wife 
of the estimable minister whose work she so worthily shared, 
she found fields of usefulness in the Church, in which she 
manifested how thoroughly the Holy Spirit had fitted her 
to be a help-meet in watching for and tending the souls 
committed to her care. Members of the Sabbath-school and 
Bible-class, at both Newcastle and Sheffield, will long treasure 
hallowed recollections of their intercourse with her. The ill- 
ness of her husband, and the loss of her children, were borne 
with holy submission to the Divine will ; and in her own 
painful illness she proved the sufficiency of Divine grace to 
keep her, even in the severest trials. On the last day on which 
she was able to leave her room, she conversed freely with the 
members of her family, expressed her strong confidence in 
Christ, and cheerfully added — 

" Not a cloud doth arise 
To darken the skies, 
Or hide for a moment my Lord from my eyes." 
Her stricken husband then administered to her the emblems of 
the death of Christ, after which her happy spirit was released, 
whilst she said, " I am going ; going to glory." 

One of those stanzas which stand pre-eminently above others 
is the one which last proceeded from the mind of Charles Wesley. 



and its A ssociations. 395 

Having sketched the lives of other writers of the hymns, we add a 
brief notice of that one writer, who, through the Divine blessing, 
has been especially made the honoured instrument of comfort- 
ing thousands of the Lord's people when passing through the 
dark valley and the shadow of death. The stanza to which 
reference has been made is as follows — 

" In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem ? 
Jesus, my only hope Thou art, 
Strength of my failing flesh and heart ; 
Oh could I catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity ! " 

Charles Wesley was born at Epworth, December 18, 1708, 
being sixteen years younger than his brother Samuel, and five 
years younger than his brother John. From his birth to the 
termination of his long life of fourscore years he was never 
strong. He was educated, first at home by his mother, then 
by his brother Samuel at Westminster, and thence he went 
to Christ-Church College, Oxford. Here it was that he joined 
his brother and others in those works of piety and self-sacrifice 
which caused them to be called Methodists. He went with his 
brother to America as a missionary in 1735, and both brothers 
returned to England after a brief sojourn in Georgia. Charles 
and John were both converted to God in the month of May 
1738, and Charles, who had begun to distinguish himself for his 
religious poetry even before that period, more diligently than 
ever devoted his mind and energies to preaching the gospel and 
writing hymns, and in this blessed work he ceased not for about 
half a century. His attainments as a scholar were worthy of the 
advantages which he enjoyed in his early life, when he acquired 
an efficient knowledge of the Latin, Greek, Hebrew, and French 
languages, and a proficiency in writing Byrom's shorthand. His 
exact and critical knowledge of the Holy Scriptures was strik- 
ingly manifested in his hymns and in his preaching. As a writer 
of devotional poetry, Charles Wesley will be permanently remem- 
bered, and his name will live in the annals of the Church. " In 
the composition of hymns adapted to Christian worship, he has 
no equal in the English language, and is perhaps superior," says 
Mr Jackson, "to every other uninspired man that ever lived." 
No man has ever written so many hymns, or hymns of such 
hi surpassing excellence. The natural weakness of his constitution 



396 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



caused him to differ often with his brother John, with whom he 
was associated during the whole of his public life. The points 
of difference between the two brothers are thus stated by Charles : 
u With my brother it was first the Methodists, then the Church ; 
with me it was first the Church, then the Methodists. My brother 
is all hope ; I am all fear." Yet Charles Wesley loved the Method- 
ists with a much deeper and intenser passion than he ever loved 
the Church. The trials which he endured throughout his whole 
life of nearly fourscore years were something marvellous, until 
at times, in the intensity of his sorrow and trial, he prayed from 
the depth of his heart that the Lord would take him to heaven 
to get away from his troubles. In the complete edition of his 
poetry, this desire for death occurs frequently, and the anxieties 
of his family, as well as the care of the Societies which fell to his 
lot, would have overwhelmed thousands with less faith in God. 
Although his income seldom exceeded ^ioo per annum, yet when 
he was offered a living in the Church of the value of ^500 a year, 
he chose, as Mr Moore informs us, Methodism with poverty to 
strict churchmanship and wealth. No two brothers ever worked 
more harmoniously or effectively together for so long a period 
than did John and Charles Wesley. When the latter was within 
a few days of the end of life, he received this laconic note from 
John, " Dear brother, you must go out every day, or die. Do 
not die to save charges. You certainly need not want anything 
as long as I live." Dr Whitehead attended him in his last days, 
but as there was no disease to cure, the only medicine he could 
give was sympathy and prayer, and the doctor says he always 
found him influenced by " unaffected humility and holy resig- 
nation to the will of God ; his mind was kept in perfect peace." 
His body was reduced to the most extreme state of weakness. 
Mr Bardsley, one of the London preachers, who sat up with him 
during the last night but one of his life, says of him, " He had no 
disorder but old age ; he had very little pain ; his mind was as 
calm as a summer evening. Some months before his departure 
he said he should die in March, and so he did." While he re- 
mained in the state of extreme feebleness, having been silent 
for some time, he called Mrs Wesley to him, and requested 
her to write, at his dictation, the lines given above. " Thus, for 
fifty years, Christ, as the Redeemer of men, had been the subject 
of his effective ministry and of his loftiest songs ; and he may 
be said to have died with a hymn of praise upon his lips. On 



and its Associations. 



397 



the last morning of his life he was unable to speak. Mrs Wesley- 
desired him to press her hand if he knew her, which he did. 
His last audible breathings were, " Lord — my heart — MY God ! " 
He then drew his breath short, and at last so gently, that the 
exact moment on which his happy spirit fled was unknown- 
The postscript of a letter to Henry Moore, in the handwriting of 
John Wesley, now before us, reads thus : " My brother fell asleep 
so quietly, that they who sat by him did not know when he 
died." He departed March 29, 1788, aged seventy-nine years 
and three months. He was interred in the graveyard of Old 
Marylebone Church, which has long been closed to the 
public. 

At the early age of eight years, William Jones was impressed 
with views of the dying love of Jesus ; but it was not till he was 
twenty that he gave his heart to the Lord. After several years* 
usefulness as a local preacher, he gave himself to the work of the 
Methodist itinerancy, and for twenty years he was an acceptable 
preacher ; and when the infirmities of age overtook him, he still 
laboured whilst he had strength. A short but severe affliction 
found him ready both to suffer and to die. Some of his last 
words were — 

" In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem?" &c. 

His last recorded words were, " I have strong consolation ; my 
anchor is cast within the veil." 

The conversion of a school-fellow was the chief means, in 
the hands of God, in the conversion of Charles Atmore. Not 
having before heard of the people called Methodists, when he 
became acquainted with them, he soon formed the resolution 
— " This people shall be my people, and their God my God/' 
Under a sermon by the Rev. Joseph Pilmoor, his convictions for 
sin were so deepened that he sought earnestly and continuously 
for pardon ; and whilst he was following the plough, like Elisha, 
and meditating on the sermon he had heard, the verse of the 
hymn commencing — 

" Oh that in me the sacred fire 

Might now begin to glow," &c., 

was so impressed on his mind, he urged his plea for pardon with 
so much earnestness, the love of God was instantly shed abroad 
in his heart, his joy and grace were boundless, and when twenty 



393 



The Methodist Hymn-Book 



years old, he joined the despised Methodists. He began to ex- 
hort and to preach in the villages around ; and with so much 
acceptance, that on being introduced to Mr Wesley at Loddon, 
in Norfolk, in February 1781, that venerable man at once 
appointed him the fourth preacher in the Norwich circuit. The 
variety, extent, and value of his labours as a Methodist preacher 
are recorded in a most interesting memoir of his life in the 
Wesley an Magazine for 1845. For forty- five years he 
preached with great acceptance in many parts of England ; his 
last service was to preach and meet classes at Stoke-Newington 
in December 1825. An illness of several months followed, in 
which he suffered much from the inability to lie down, but 
although his strength failed, his inward man was renewed day 
by day. As the end approached, Jesus and glory were his only 
themes, and he frequently repeated the memorable lines of Mr 
Wesley, as applicable to his own case — 

"In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem ? " &c. 

Shortly before midnight of June 30, 1826, he fell into a soft 
slumber, to which he had been an entire stranger for many 
months ; and in that slumber, at ten minutes past midnight, 
July 1, he peacefully entered the paradise of God. For many 
years, it is believed that more than five hundred conversions 
per annum resulted from Mr Atmore's labours as a Methodist 
preacher. 

"A mother in Israel" was Mrs Elizabeth Gillings (mother of 
the Rev. James Gillings) whom we remember with pleasure 
about the time when her son entered the itinerancy. At about 
the age of twenty-five, she was converted under the ministry of 
the Rev. Corbett Cooke. For many years she was a much 
esteemed class-leader, an office for which she was, by her rich 
and clear experience, well qualified. During a severe affliction 
she rejoiced greatly that she had consented to her son becoming 
a missionary to the heathen. Her heart was filled with gratitude 
to God, and all she spoke was praise. When dying, she said 
with much energy, " I know that my Redeemer liveth," and 
repeated Charles Wesley's lines — 

" O let me catch one smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity ! " 
Her last words were, " I shall soon be with my Saviour : all is 
well ! * 



and its Associations. 



399 



The mother of the Rev. William Pennington Burgess, A.M., 
Wesleyan minister, was born in 1766, at one of the homes of the 
early Methodist preachers, in Aldermanbury, London. As the 
daughter of a Methodist preacher, she was acquainted with 
religion from childhood. At the age of fourteen she was con- 
verted to God, and began to meet in class ; at the age of seventeen 
she heard Mr Wesley preach in Dublin, and was much blessed 
by his ministry. For several years she accompanied her hus- 
band to his various stations whilst he followed a military pro- 
fession. This he afterwards abandoned, and became a preacher 
of the gospel, and during an itinerancy of forty-two years his wife 
was really a help-meet to the faithful servant of God. At the 
advanced age of more than fourscore years, and when death 
was at hand, in the last letter she wrote, addressed to her 
son, she concluded thus, " I often find Charles Wesley's dying 
hymn — 

1 In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a helpless worm redeem ? * &c., 

very sweet to me : only I want to dwell now under a constant 
sense of my Saviour's smile, and then to catch a brighter one at 
the last." In her eighty-second year she died, leaving as her 
dying motto, " Love ! thanks ! blessing ! " 

Under the powerful and heart- searching ministry of the Rev. 
Joseph Benson, in Oldham Street Chapel, Manchester, the 
excellent James Wood was convinced of sin, sought and found 
pardon, and in 1794 joined the Methodist Society there. His 
character throughout a long career of godliness was marked by 
every Christian virtue, and his public services, philanthropic 
and religious, were worthy of the vocation wherewith he was 
called. In the Sunday-school, prayer-meetings, as a visitor of 
the Strangers' Friend Society, he exercised those talents which 
made him afterwards an acceptable and useful class-leader and 
local preacher. His high moral rectitude in business, his large- 
hearted catholicity, his judicious counsels and seasonable 
liberality in connexion with Methodism, made his name and 
memory precious in the Society where he worshipped. He was 
accustomed, when a youth, to accompany Dr Coke to solicit 
contributions in Manchester for the missions, and one of the 
last acts of his public life was to send his annual subscription of 
;£ioo to the Wesleyan missions, some months before it was due, 
to lessen the necessity for borrowing. In his last illness he 



40O The Methodist Hymn-Book 



endured much suffering without a murmur. As the end 
approached he desired one of his daughters to copy for him the 
last lines composed by Charles Wesley, which, for several days, 
were continually upon his lips — 

"In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem ? " &c. 

His last words were those of triumph, " Glory ! glory ! " and 
after a pause, ft Hallelujah !" 

Respect for the Sabbath-day was inculcated on Joseph Meek 
from early childhood. At the age of fifteen, under a sermon by 
the Rev. Joseph Pilmoor, he was convinced of sin, but he did not 
realise a sense of sins forgiven for more than a year. During a 
great revival in Yorkshire, in 1793, after hearing the Rev. Wil- 
liam Perceval preach at Easingwold, the word came with power 
to his heart ; he yielded a cheerful obedience to the Divine call, 
and obtained a sense of pardon. Soon after his conversion 
he was made the leader of a class, composed principally of 
recent converts, which, in a few months, numbered forty mem- 
bers. On Sunday morning, it was his custom to accompany 
his religious friends four miles to Easingwold, to attend the 
six o'clock prayer-meeting, and to enjoy the other ordinances of 
God's house. After this preaching was commenced in his native 
village, and in 1800 he was called into the Methodist itinerancy 
by the Rev. James Wood ; and for fifty years he laboured with 
diligence and acceptance, winning many souls for Jesus. In 
1839 he retired from the full ministry, and for ten years spent 
himself and his time in doing all the good he could, especially 
to the young. He bore affliction uncomplainingly; asked the 
prayers of the Lord's people ; and shortly before he died, he fre- 
quently repeated the verse commencing — 

" In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem ?" &c. 

His last prayer to God was, " I resign my soul, my body, my 
family, my all, into the arms of Thy mercy." 

When only eleven years of age, Miss Butterfield, who after- 
wards became the wife of the Rev. Thomas Raston, began to 
meet in class, but she did not realise a sense of pardon till 
death a second time visited her family. She embarked for Sierra 
Leone in 1847 as the wife of a missionary — a life, the trials, 
privations, and afflictions of which experience only can make 



and its Associations, 



401 



known. She at once became the leader of a class of twenty- 
five females, who greatly benefited by her instructions. Severe 
affliction soon prostrated her strength, and baffled all the medi- 
cal skill of the colony. She had to return home to England, 
where, after lingering a few months, she became fully resigned 
to the will of God. For eighteen months health, strength, and 
voice were all but gone, so that she spoke but in faint whispers ; 
but just at the close, she was so filled with Divine love, her 
strength returned, and she exclaimed, " O the glory ! I am 
going ! Jesus is here ! O praise God ! O the goodness of God !" 
From this time a heavenly smile sat upon her countenance. 
She lingered in pain but in patience, oft repeating — 

" O let me catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity !" 

Her last words to her husband, on his leaving her bedside to 
attend a missionary-meeting at Manchester, were, " Tell the 
people they will never repent of what they do for the perishing 
heathen." She breathed out her happy spirit with the words 
quivering on her lips — 

u O let me catch a smile from Thee ! " 

One of the converts at the glorious revival in Cornwall, in 
1795, during that remarkable preaching-tour of the Rev. Joseph 
Benson, was Miss Mary Garland, who afterwards became the 
wife of the Rev. James Odgers. At an early period of her reli- 
gious life, she sought earnestly and found the blessing of entire 
sanctification, and she long bore a faithful testimony to the 
efficacy of the blood which cleanseth from all sin. The Bible 
was her daily companion, and prayer her delight. The Lord 
honoured her by giving her fulness of happy days, and a 
triumphant death. Shortly before she escaped to paradise, she 
said — 

" O let me catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity !" 
Then, lying composedly, she added, " Farewell ! I am near 
home," and peacefully expired. 

Hannah Lacy lived till she was twenty-one years old without 
any knowledge of saving religion. In 1785, a great revival broke 
out at Todmorden, under the preaching of the Rev. Charles 
Atmore and his colleagues, and more than eight hundred members 
were added to the Church in two years, one of whom was Han- 

2 c 



402 



The Methodist Hymn-Bock 



nah Lacy. In those days carriages were unknown in that part of 
England; Mr Grimshaw, Mr Crosse, Mr Fletcher, and Mr Wesley 
all rode there on horseback. David Lacy, Hannah's father, was 
the leader of a class at Todmorden, in the early days of Method- 
ism ; at his death, his son, Henry, became its leader ; and at his 
death, his sister undertook the duty. Thus was one class kept in 
the charge of one family for nearly eighty years, and in that class 
she had continuously met for nearly seventy years. There was 
spiritual life in that Methodist class ; there were many such at 
that period ; would there were many more now ! The religion 
of Hannah Lacy was " Glory begun below • " she was cheerful, 
happy, and always doing something for God. When more than 
eighty years of age, she continued to meet her class, starting the 
tunes, and adding life to the service. Even at that age, she would 
attend the service at the chapel three times on the Sabbath. 
Her last illness was short ; but as in health, so in sickness, the 
cause of God lay near her heart : all her glorying was in Christ. 
To nearly all inquirers about her health, she replied in Charles 
Wesley's words, which she had uttered almost daily for many 
years — 

" In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem ? 

O let me catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity ! " 

She spoke with great confidence of the future glory of Method- 
ism, and in her eighty-ninth year, died in peace, and entered 
heaven in triumph. 

At the age of seventeen, Sarah Gibbs gave her heart to the Lord, 
after hearing Mr Brackenbury preach. in the Isle of Portland, in 
1793. She became an esteemed class-leader in 1810, welcomed 
all Methodist preachers to her cottage and hospitality, and was 
a fine specimen of primitive godliness, an Israelite indeed. 
W 7 hen eighty-five years were passed, and the weary wheels of 
life were standing still, she raised her head, and whispered — 

" O let me catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity ! " 

In early life, Mrs Wightman, of Belfield House, Sheffield, gave 
her heart to the Lord, and her support to Methodism. She 
attended the services at Carver Street Chapel, from the time of 
its opening to the end of her life. She was a member of Society 



and its Associations. 



403 



for fifty-seven years, and during that time had an unwaver- 
ing trust in God. The influence of her godly example was 
impressed upon all around her ; her last long affliction was 
borne with exemplary patience, and she spoke constantly in the 
language of praise and prayer. She repeated with much em- 
phasis, when in great weakness of body, Charles Wesley's verse 
commencing — 

" In age and feebleness extreme," &c. \ 

ana, at the age of eighty-five, she calmly entered into rest. 

When the whole county of Kent formed but one circuit in 
Methodism, with only two preachers to work it, under a sermon, 
preached at five o'clock in the morning by the Rev. John Wesley, 
Mr H. Hilliard was convinced of sin, sought and found pardon, 
and joined the Society, at Chatham, in June 1783. He had the 
privilege of hearing John Wesley preach nine times, and his 
brother, the Rev. Charles Wesley, he heard once. He was a 
member of Society more than eighty years, and a class-leader 
more than seventy years. He walked before his family and the 
world with a perfect heart. When death was plainly before him, 
he peacefully said, " I am going home to meet all my friends 
who have gone before me." His dying testimony was in these 
words : " My meditation of Christ and of His atonement is sweet, 
and I will thank Him. And now I have but one desire — 

' In age and feebleness extreme, 
Who shall a sinful worm redeem? 
Jesus, my only hope Thou art, 
Strength of my failing flesh and heart 
O could I catch a smile from Thee, 
And drop into eternity !*"' 

His desire was granted ; a few hours later he breathed out his 
life, as gently as a summer wave dies on the shore, in his ninety- 
sixth year. 



INDEX 



To the incidents given in the volume, in the order of the Hymns. Those 

marked * are named only in the index. 
The names in capitals are those of Methodist Preachers or members of 

their families. 

Full biographical sketches will be found in the volumes of the Wesley an 
Methodist Magazine named in the fifth and sixth columns. 



Hymn 



15 
16 



26 
26 
26 
26 
26 
26 
29 
29 
33 
33 
34 
34 
34 
34 
34 
35 
37 
37 
37 
37 
37 
37 
37 



Name. 

Green, Mrs, 

Clarkson, Mrs, 

Collier, Sarah, 

Day, Mrs Mary, 

Triffit, Anthony, 

Molineux, Thomas, 

Bentley, Peter, 

Baker, Sarah, 

Ince, Mrs Ellen, 

Martin, James, 

Dean, William, 

Hazlehurst, Thomas, 

Topham, Mrs, 

Docking, John, 

Parnell, Ann, 

Jackson, Elizabeth, 

Bottomley, George, 

Ross, Thomas, 

Mood, Rev. Joseph, 

Davies, Rev. Owen, 

Wight, Mr EL, 

Higginbotham, Elizabeth,.., 

Jobson, Elizabeth, 

Tasker, John, , 

Pritchard, Mary, 

Walton, William, 

Isitt, James 

Entwisle, Rev. William,. 

Goodacre, William, 

Thorley, Joshua, 

Dalby, Matilda, 

Smith, Mrs , 

Stokoe, James, 

Carvosso, Mrs Alice, 

Morris, William, , 

Thompson, William, 

Jeffs, Jane, 

Topham, Miss, , 

Wyvill, Paulina, , 

Baker, Elizabeth, , 

Elliott, Robert, , 

Hulse, Ellen, 

Voakes, Robert, , 

Robarts, Rev. Richard,. 
Needham, Rev. James, 
Rushforth, ReY. Thos. C 









Wes. Meth. Mas.-. 


Date 01 JJea 


th. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 


September, 27 


1843 


70 


1843 


95i 


August 13, 


T848 


83 


1848 


1254 


July 9, 




2 3 


1840 


861 


June it, 


1837 


73 


1837 


716 


November 2, 


1853 


75 


1854 


853 


November 3, 


1854 


66 


1857 


573 


April 24, 


1859 


73 


1862 


463 


June 29, 


1838 


82 


1838 


716 


April 2, 
December 24, 


1854 


85 


1854 


575 


1858 


79 


1859 


479 


March 26, 


1835 


30 


1835 


634 


February 17, 


1842 


63 


1844 


716 


September 18, 


1848 


61 


1849 


93 


March 24, 


1865 


82 


1866 


477 


August 31, 


1843 


80 


1858 


683 
684 


February 27, 


1833 


77 


1833 
1857 


November 10, 


1856 


70 


382 


February 6, 


1847 


70 


1847 


725 


June 23, 


i860 


42 


1862 


1078 


January 12, 


1830 


77 


1832 


39i 


April 17, 


1840 


40 


1840 


43i 


November 6, 


1855 


30 


1857 


671 


October 2, 
September 3, 


1840 


54 


1842 


987 


1864 


7i 


1866 


186 


January 6, 


1840 


60 


1841 


945 


January 23, 


1841 


83 


1843 


283 


October 28, 


1857 


45 


1859 


957 


July 14, 


1831 


31 


18,2 


706 


November 26, 


1840 


66 


1841 


149 
483 


March 25, 


1844 


60 


1848 


April 18, 
May 26, 


1858 


46 


1859 


1138 


1845 


74 


1857 


766 
358 


April 4, 


1821 


68 


1822 


July, 


1813 


63 


1815 


147 

285 


November 21, 


1864 


69 
80 


1866 


September 18, 


1840 


1840 


958 


February 6, 


1819 


45 


1820 


692 


October 15, 


1839 


26 


1839 


1023 


August 28, 


1839 


38 


1842 


100 


October 27, 


1857 


65 


1858 


766 


March 16, 


1827 


72 


1828 


137 


December 4, 


1852 


30 


1853 


383 


January 27, 


1857 


93 


1858 


875 


October 1, 


1819 


34 


1819 


863 


June 27, 


1818 


45 


1820 


87 


May 21, 


1819 


32 


1821 


405 



406 



Index. 



Hymn. 



37 

38 

38 

39 

41 

42 

44 

44 

45 

45 

45 

45 

46 

46 

4 6 

49 

49 

49 

49* 

51 

52 

53 

55 

59 

59 

65 

65 

66 

66 

66 

66 

67 
67* 
68 
68 



68 

68 

69 

69 

6g 

70 

70 

70 

70 

7o* 

70 

7i 

71 

7i 

73* 

73 

73 

74 

74* 

74 

74 

74 

75 

76 

76 

76 

76 



Name. 

Thompson, Rev. Thomas,. 

Ward, Benjamin, 

Shipman, Marian, 

Johnson, John, 

Kay, William, 

Bellamy, Rev. George, 

Whitewood, Thomas, 

Paine, Priscilla, 

Jones, John, , 

Fox, Mrs W. B., 

Thomas, James, 

Bullivant, Elizabeth,... 

Shipman, Ann, 

Holy, Mrs, 

Hobkinson, Anne, 

Hindson, William,.., „ 

Maden, Edward, 

Woolmer, Nath. Francis,... 

Dearden, Elizabeth, 

Wayte, James H., 

Parkin, William, 

Milner, Betsy, 

Lyth, Mrs, „ „ 

Bridge, Luke, 

Brown, Ann, 

Hick, Samuel, „ 

Scott, Margaret, 

Pemberton, Mary Ann,.. 

Edwards, Sarah, „ 

Howes, Sophia Charlotte, ... 

Nuttall, Elizabeth, 

Sims, Elizabeth, 

Linley, Richard, 

Bum by, Mary, 

Fletcher, Mary, 

M'Allum, Rev. Daniel, M.D 

Stevenson, John G., 

Horton, Mrs William,... 

Hall, Sarah, 

Wilson, Rev. Maximilian 

Roach, William, 

Swindells, Hannah, 

Atkinson, Rebecca, » 

Cowley, George, 

Henley, Mary Gould,... 

Tindale, Benjamin, 

Lord, Sarah, 

Daniell, Bridget, „ 

Pratt, Catherine, 

Weir, Sarah Ann, 

Jottie, John, 

West, Elizabeth, 

Smith, Martha, 

Wood, Rev. Robert, 

Fernley, John Dyson, 

Ramshaw, John, 

Parson, Thomas, , 

Chapman, Robert, 

Hunter, James, M.D., 

Brown, Charlotte, 

Lamplough, Elizabeth, 

Holden. Sarah, 

Dewhurst, Sarah, 

Ley, Virtue, 









IVes. Meth. Mae. 


Date of Death. 


Age. 


Year. 


rage. 


January 31, 


1838 


5i 


1838 


707 


May 26, 


1849 


61 


1849 


878 


January 6, 


1856 


58 


1856 


288 


November 30, 


IOOI 


45 


1863 


755 


T..1„ „ 

July *3j 


1864 


82 


1864 


"5i 


November 2, 


.0.. 
1 021 


42 


1822 
1841 


340 
354 


August 22, 


1540 


77 


l8 53 


286 


July, 


1813 


46 


1818 


218 


r„i„ 

J uiy, 


1819 




1819 


OO5 


January 23, 


1855 


77 


1855 


288 


: March 12, 


1*35 


74 


l8 35 


493 


December 4, 


1846 


56 


1849 


1016 


Jfanuary 6, 


1841 


78 


1843 


103 


[ November 10, 


,0-, 
"54 


53 


,0 

io^o 


187 


i July 24, 


1854 


78 


1854 


498 


December 19, 


1863 


58 


I0O5 


203 


i January 17, 


1866 


61 


1866 


480 


\ December 3, 


1838 


27 


^39 


s 53 


January 16, 


1846 


23 


1849 


117 


May 10, 
September 25, 


1858 


64 


i860 


880 


i860 


94 


1863 


260 


T„l„ . 

J «iy 4, 

: November n, 


1000 


78 


i860 


960 


lS 59 


82 


1861 


9^6 


September 24, 


1834 


39 


1834 


070 


•November 9, 


1829 


7i 


1831 


225 


March 6, 


"45 


76 


1845 


1227 


October 10, 


1852 


44 


1852 


1222 


S January 2, 


1866 


<57 


I OOO 


479 


December 2, 


1865 


83 


1866 


7 6 5 


December 16, 


1834 
1845 


57 


1837 


232 


August 11, 
December 25, 


65 


1846 


94 


1841 


21 


1846 


325 


July 4, 
December 9, 


1831 


57 


1833 


841 


1815 


76 


1816 


158 


July 2, 


1827 


33 


1829 


79 


August 1, 


1866 


74 






June 6, 


1842 


38 


1842 


1044 


December 18, 


1856 


87 


1837 


479 


January 13, 


1857 


89 


1858 


969 


August 21, 


1849 


75 


1855 


93 


November 18, 


"39 


57 


J 842 


196 


February 11, 


1858 


58 


i860 


955 


November 5, 


1848 


72 


1849 


208 


April 29, 


1866 


62 


1866 


960 


August 6, 


1831 








May 2, 


1835 




1835 


495 


April 18, 
February 13, 


1838 


75 


1840 


906 


1842 


54 


1842 


332 


January 9, 


1852 




1852 


402 


July 15, 
Alarch 15 


1849 


79 


1854 


7 & 7 


18^0 


30 


1831 


521 


July, 


1856 




1857 


687 


June 10, 


1851 


63 


"o4 


679 


June 14, 


1846 


3i 


1849 


1236 


October 24, 


1841 


49 
66 


1841 


io37 
383 


December 16, 


1852 


1853 


January 28, 


1862 


78 


1862 


479 


January 3, 


1859 


43 


1S59 


288 


December 9, 


1845 


34 


1846 


223 


April 26, 


1824 


47 


1824 


719 


April 10, 


1846 


35 


1846 


824 


April 4, 
September 4, 


1829 


20 


1829 


278 


1845 


45 


184S 


1056 



Index. 



407 



Hymn 



81 

92 
95 
95 
96 

97 



"5 

115 

"5 

115* 

115* 

1x5* 
us 

us* 
us* 
ii 5 * 
us* 
us* 
ii 5 * 
us* 
ii 5 * 
us* 
us* 
ii 5 * 
us* 
ii 5 * 

125 
127 
127 
128 
128 
129 
136 
140 

i43 * 

r4s * 

i4 < 
143* 

143* 

S < 

143 

143* 

143* 

143* 

143* 

143" 

143* 

143* 

143* 

143* 

143* 

143* 

143* 

i43* 

143* 

143* 

143* 



Name. 



Langley, John, 

Cordeux, Hannah, 

Harper, John, 

Caudler, Ann, 

Barton, Rev. William,.... 

Wood, Mary, 

Gabriel, Mrs Thomas, 

Lewis, Frances, 

Lishman, William, 

Tyrer, John, 

Wesley, Sarah, 

Wesley, John, A.M., 

Rawlins, Philip, 

Millar, Elias, 

Oke, James, 

Alexander, William, 

Peart, Mrs James, 

AlKENHEAD, JOHN, 

Major, John, 

Appleyard, Mrs, 

Nay lor, Matthew, 

Wilson, William, 

Rofe, Mrs M., 

Penman, Jane, 

Bennett, Martha, 

Whitlock, William, 

Smith, Joshua, 

Hardy, Mary Ann, 

Williams, John, 

Bersey, Thomas, 

Jackson, William, 

Jones, Sarah, 

Ness, Frances, 

Fisher, Rev. John, 

Marriott, Mrs, 

Bagshaw, Thomas, 

Sargent, George, 

Ranson, Fanny, 

Burrall, Solomon, 

Horne, Rev. Thomas H.,.. 

Skinner, Ann, 

Mortimer, Mary Ann, 

Brownell, John, 

Carvosso, Alice, 

Burton, Ann, 

Rawlins, Sarah, 

Mollershead, James, 

Lord, Hannah, 

Kirby, Hannah, 

Ridsdale, W., 

Hobill, Elizabeth, 

Clements, Mrs, 

Beck, Sarah, 

Boyd, Adam, 

Janion, Mary 

Hawkesworth, J. P., 

Hazlehurst, Thomas, 

Palmer, Joseph, 

Hughes, John, 

Hatton, Jane, 

Lomas, George , 

Boothby, Ann, 

Meek, Joseph, 

Cheeseborough, John, 









Wes. Meth. Ma?. 


Date of Death. 


A^e 


y 

Year. 


.rage. 


August 28, 


1832 




1832 


902 


January 25, 


1842 


60 


1842 


245 


March 20, 


1854 


67 


1857 


378 


May 11, 

March 27, 
February 23, 


1820 


22 


1821 


122 


1857 


54 


1865 


1069 


1856 


77 


1859 


94 


March 11, 


i860 


9 1 


i860 


1055 


January 16, 


1848 


65 


1848 


687 


May 14, 
August, 


1850 


57 


1855 


1058 


1841 


75 


1841 


644 


September 19, 


1828 


68 


1828 


719 


March 2, 


1791 


87 


1791 




May 16, 


1833 


78 


1833 


464 


June 11, 


1832 


35 


1833 
1834 


892 


April 1, 
February 12, 


1834 




398 


1837 
1837 


72 


1837 


316 


March 27, 


69 


1837 


477 


March 12, 


,1835 


66 


1837 


565 


June 9, 


1838 


44 


1838 


875 


May 3, 
November 5, 


1839 


70 


1839 


943 


1839 


75 


1841 


459 




1840 


26 


1841 


553 


January 18, 


1842 


39 


1842 


243 


February 1, 
November 20, 


1844 


3 1 


1844 


607 


1845 


48 


1846 


409 


July 16, 
August 4, 
December 17, 


1846 


84 


1846 


1032 


1846 


75 


1847 


100 


1848 


40 


1849 


428 


February 29, 


1856 


77 


1856 


575 


June 7, 


1857 


78 


1857 


849 


June 28, 


i860 


80 


i8eo 


960 


May 5, 


1847 


22 


1847 


1245 


June 20, 


1853 


90 


1853 


9^5 


January 16, 


1810 


32 


1810 


411 


May 25, 
October 31, 


1865 


42 


1866 


762 


1842 


74 


1842 


1046 


February 7, 


1842 


5o 


1842 


3 6 4 


January 7, 
November 14, 


1829 


40 


1831 


11 


1825 


65 


1827 


7 


January 27, 


1862 


82 


1863 


969 


June 7, 


1822 


25 


1823 


723 


May 28, 
September 24, 


1827 


26 


1828 


279 


1821 


5o 


1823 


2 


July, 


1813 


63 


1815 


146 


December 12, 


1832 


6i 


1833 


155 


December, 


1832 


83 


1833 


157 


May 1, 


1833 


63 


1833 
1833 


825 


May 18, 
August 25, 


1833 


72 


826 


1832 


54 


1834 


230 


March 11, 


1836 


49 


1836 


318 


April 19, 
October 24, 


1836 


52 


1837 


795 


l8 39 


7 1 


1840 


S 2 


December 1, 


1840 


62 


1841 


1033 


January 24, 


1842 


93 


1842 


244 


May 12, 


1841 


78 


1844 


452 


March 25, 


1844 


7i 


1844 


490 


February 18, 


1842 


63 


1844 


7*5 


January 20, 


1845 


75 
67 


1845 


404 


May 15, 
December 11, 


I-843 
1845 


1847 


220 


9i 


1849 


13 


January 12, 


1848 


65 


1851 


322 


April 10, 


1851 


62 


1851 


1022 


September 7, 


1849 


73 


1853 


506 


August 11, 


1850 


66 


1853 


995 , 



408 



Index. 



Hymn. 

143* 

143* 

i43 

i43 

i43 

*43 

143 

143 

147 

147 

156 

157 
157 
163 



J 75„ 



Name. 



189* 



190 

1 go* 

190* 

I go* 

190* 

190* 

198 

198 

198 

199 

200 

201* 

201 

201 

201 

201 

201 

201 

201 

201 

202* 

202 

202 

202 

202 

202 

202* 

202* 

202 

202* 

202 

205 

205 

205 



Lamplough, Mrs, 

Marsden, George, 

Ostick, Frances, 

Titterton, Catherine, 

Blanshard, Ann, 

Bargate, William, 

Beaumont, Susannah, 

Jordan, Julia E., 

Carter, Thomas, 

Bailey, John, 

Gardner, Mrs, 

Bennett, Mrs, 

Sutcliff, John Clarkson, 

Isaac, Mary, 

Ravenscroft, Ralph, 

Glass, Charlotte, 

Dowsett, Elizabeth, 

Barton, Rev. William,.... 

Atkinson, John, 

Meggett, Samuel, 

M'Laughlin, Ann, 

Dean, Rev. John, 

Schoon, George, , 

Trickett, Sarah, , 

Bicknell, Maria, , 

Bagnall, John, , 

Kitson, Maria, , 

Burkett, Mrs, 

Whitehouse, Eleanor, 

Bogie, Rev. James, 

Smetham, Rev. James, .... 

I Beaumont, Thomas, 

j Cunningham, Frances, 

j Wrightson, Caroline, 

Butterfield, John, 

Fowle, James, 

Toase, Elizabeth,. 

Roberts, Ann,. 

Dickinson, Margaret, 

Nocke, Elizabeth,, 

Watson, Stephen, 

Edwards, Robert, 

Stocks, Mrs, 

Dove, Mrs, 

Hobill, George, 

Arnett, Mrs, 

Obee, Sarah, 

Davis, Charles, 

Gardner, Mary Ann, 

Lewis, Mary, 

Clarke, Annabella, 

Collinson, James, 

Strawe, Rev. John, 

Buckley, Rev. James,... 

Thorneloe, Mary H.,... 

Hiskins, William, 

Brookhouse, Mrs B., 

White, Theophilus, 

Nother, Rev. William, 

Draycott, George, 

Barnsley, Ann, 

Walker, Richard, 

I Shepherd, Kezia, 

' Hawkesworth, J. P., , 









Wes . Meth. Mag. 


Date of Death. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 




1856 


70 


1856 


668 


May 16, 


1858 


85 


1858 


586 


January 17, 


1859 


83 


I 859 


288 


January 6, 


i860 


74 


i860 


2^7 


January 16, 


1864 


78 


1004 


477 


March 23, 


1865 


78 


1866 


393 


June 4, 
November 15, 


1866 


68 


1866 


670 


i860 


20 


1003 


93 


June 7, 
December 23, 


1858 


77 


IoOO 


863 


1862 


77 


IOO4 


380 


October 23, 


1848 


81 


1849 


207 


December 1, 


1814 


50 


T q, T 
I041 


712 


February 2, 


1858 


70 


iS d9 


776 


December 11, 


1855 


96 


I0 57 


666 


March 22, 


1848 


52 


,0,0 
I040 


919 


November 20, 


1844 


40 


1845 


187 


August 24, 


1855 


92 


IO5O 


95 


March 27, 


1857 


54 


I°57 


400 


May, 


1856 


63 


1650 


1051 


February 17, 


1861 


81 


1863 


284 


November 28, 


1827 




1828 


09 


February 16, 


1822 


56 


1823 


280 


January 26, 


1828 


1829 


222 


January 9, 


1830 


72 


1831 


x 37 


June 9, 


1817 


30 


1817 


938 


November 16, 


1829 


71 


1831 


5*8 


March 29, 
February 18, 


1835 


20 


1035 


397 


1831 


62 


1831 


205 


January 3, 


1831 




1832 


76 


October 4, 


1837 


80 


1837 


878 


October 3, 


1847 


56 


1850 


1241 


[ November 25, 


1819 


74 


1821 


284 


September 5, 


1846 


82 


1847 


IOI 


January 11, 


1850 


57 


1853 


421 


December 8, 


1843 


4i 


1847 


732 


October 24, 


1862 






August 5, 


1840 


86 


1840 


OOO 


January 6, 


1858 


74 


1858 


S£ A 

OO4 


May 7, 


1846 


75 


1846 


O4O 


February 20, 


1837 


28 


l8 37 


624 


August 1, 


1837 


68 


1040 


362 


May 10, 


1839 


16 


l8 39 


8 53 


December 4, 


1845 


69 


1849 


120 


February 13,' 


1815 


23 


1816 


533 


December 29, 


1858 


76 


1 861 


469 


October 30, 


1840 


1841 


67 


February 10, 


1847 


83 


1847 


1050 


November 27, 


1839 


77 


2843 


67 


March 22, 


1826 


3i 


1827 


209 


May 6, 


1861 


64 


1861 


1141 


April 25, 
January 23, 


1844 


54 


1844 


861 


1851 


39 


1851 


603 


September 17 


1841 


40 


1841 


863 


August 24, 


1839 


69 


1842 




November 15, 


i860 


45 


1863 


392 


March 23, 
February 19, 


1830 


90 


1832 


617 


1821 


45 


1821 


434 


July 24, 
March 15, 


1824 


93 


1824 


790 


1840 


66 


1840 


429 


March 4, 
February 24, 


1853 


62 


1853 


574 


1855 


86 


1855 


870 


February 20, 


1815 


54 


1818 
1800 


597 
123 


[ March 25, 


1844 


74 


1844 


490 



Index. 



409 



Hymn. 



205 

205 

205* 

205 

205 

205 

205 

206 

209 

209 

209 

210 

213 

213 

213 

213* 

213 

213* 

213 

213* 

213* 

213* 

214 

214 

217 

220 

224 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

224* 

227* 

227* 

227 

227 

227 

227* 

227 

227* 

228* 

228 

229 

229* 

23T 

231* 

245 

245 

246 

246 



Name. 



Sutherland, Agnes Douglas, 

Budgett, Henry, , 

Brook, Elizabeth, , 

Proctor, Bryan, 

Robinson, William, 

Gibson, George, 

Chapman, Christopher, 

Agar, Rev. Joseph, 

Harkness, Sarah, 

Ash, Elizabeth Mary, 

Reynolds, Mary, 

Joyce, Mary, 

Dewhurst, John, 

Bickerton, Sarah, 

Pawson, Thomas, , 

Brookhouse, Mrs B., , 

Batho, Ellen, , 

Riley, John, , 

Lofthouse, John, , 

Vasey, Sarah, , 

Greene, Ann, , 

Fowler, Rev. William, 

Pool, Ann, 

Decker, Rev. George H.,< 

Fernley, Maria, 

Fowler, George, 

Wesley, John, A.M., , 

Shadford, George, 

Kynnersley, Mrs, , 

Woolmer, Rev. Samuel,.., 

Hick, Samuel, , 

Entwisle, Rev. William,, 

Owen, Sarah, 

Wolfenden, Mary, 

Nicholson, Ann, 

Fairbourn,' Rev. John, 

Pattison, Rev. Richard,., 

Hickson, Lois, , 

Richardson, Hannah, — 

Wood, Mary, , 

Palmer, Rev. Samuel, , 

Leadbeater, Mary Ann, 

De Bock, Mrs, , 

Jeffs, Samuel, , 

Ford, Elizabeth, '. 

Sansum, John, , 

Willerton, Ann, , 

Pugh, Susannah, , 

Hunter, Mrs, 

Bush, Mrs, 

Scholes, Samuel, 

Simpson, Abiah, 

Vevers. Hannah, 

Hulme, Richard, 

Williams, Henry, , 

Wilson, Rebecca, 

Hardy, Mary, , 

Emmett, Robert , , 

Rankin, Rev. Thomas, 

Brown, Hannah, , 

Broad, Sarah, 

Young, Ann, , 

Henwood, Mrs, 

Owen, Sarah, 



Date of Death. 



January 20, 
December 15, 
July 28, 
January 26, 
June 27, 
October 20, 
November 16, 
August 23, 
April 15, 
December 9, 
January 3, 
November 9, 
June 24, 
February 23, 
September 5, 
February 19, 
July 28, 
May 7, 
August 14, 
October 24, 
October 31, 
August 25, 
October 22, 
February 23, 
January 13, 
October 27, 
March 2, 
March 11, 
July 7> 
June 18, 
November 9, 
July 14, 
October 12, 
February 22, 
February 18, 
May 2, 
December 29, 
December 24, 
December 28, 
May 4, 
May 15, 
September 9, 
February 20, 
July 27, 
August 15, 
February 5, 
September 6, 
November 21, 
February 4, 
June 30, 
November 17, 
September 22, 
March 17, 
September 19, 
October 17, 
August 28, 
June 19, 
February ix, 
May 17, 
March 30, 
December 27, 
January 8, 
January 25, 
October 12, 







Wes. Meth. Mar. 


th. 


Age. 


Year. 


rage. 


1849 


86 


1853 


I063 


1849 


71 


1855 


472 


1864 


71 


1865 


IO5O 


1827 


92 


1828 


440 


1814 


83 


1815 


848 


1838 


' 69 


1838 


958 


1824 


33 


1825 


573 


1830 


4i 


1832 


168 


1857 


47 


1859 


399 


1853 


34 


1854 


192 


1854 


75 


1854 


287 


1836 
1825 


69 


1837 


6 35 


20 


1826 


286 


1831 


43 


1831 


286 


1831 


70 


1834 


485 


1821 


49 


1821 


132 


1827 


69 


1828 


356 


1842 


21 


1846 


846 


1855 


60 


1856 


409 


1831 
1834 


40 


1833 


381 


54 


1834 


959 


1853 


42 


1854 


189 


1837 


3i 


1840 


467 


1857 


37 


1858 


870 


1864 


65 


1864 


862 


1836 


67 


1844 


266 


1 791 


87 


1 791 


557 


1816 


77 


1816 


652 


1811 




1813 


694 


1827 


55 


1830 


368 


1829 


7i 


1831 


224 


1831 


3 1 


1831 


651 


1832 


73 


1833 


303 


1832 


72 


1834 


420 


1840 


56 


1840 


335 


1839 


56 


1841 


444 


1839 


69 


1842 


189 
984 


1840 


44 


1843 
1844 


1843 


46 


328 


1843 


61 


1847 


10 


1846 


42 


1849 


460 


1853 


84 


1853 


1160 


1850 


72 


1855 


963 


1859 


81 


1859 


1055 


1857 


68 


1859 


669 


1865 


82 


1865 


670 


1853 


78 


1856 


"39 


1856 


56 


1858 


574 


1866 


72 


1866 


574 


1848 


75 


1848 


1356 


x8 33 


84 


1834 


636 


1857 


83 


1857 


1142 


1840 


48 


1840 


343 


1864 


69 


1869 




1865 


61 


1866 


860* 


1836 


50 


1839 


368 


1831 


33 


1834 . 


572 


1818 


68 


1818 


760 


1810 


74 


1810 


281 


1824 


24 


1824 


574 


1837 


32 


1838 


555 


1839 
1807 


39 


1840 


333 




1861 


482 


1832 


77 


1833 


3^4 | 



4io 



Index. 



Hyn 



246 * 

246 * 

246 

250 

263 

269 

269* 

272 

272* 

272 

272* 

272 

273 

285 

285* 

285* 

287 



295 
301 
312 
316 
3i7 
327 
328 
528 
328 
328 
329 
3 2 9 
330 

333 * 

333 * 
333 

333" 

333* 

333 

333! 

333 

333* 

333* 

333* 

333 

333 

335* 

335 

335 

335 

336 

336* 

336" 

336 

336* 

337 

337 

337* 

338* 

338 

338 

340 

343 

343 

343 



Name. 



B arrett, Mrs 

Millward, Ursula, 

Bird, Mrs,... 

Thompson, Thomas, 

Rolstone, George, 

Treffry, William, 

Fox, Rev. William, 

Hoby, James, 

Williams, Samuel, 

Hincksman, Dorothy, 

Pool, Ann, 

Gaulter, Mrs 

Deane, Elizabeth, 

Manwaring, Rev. George, 

Dudeney, Mrs, 

Hickson, Lois, , 

Wilson, Mrs,. 

Miller, Mary, 

Taylor, Rev. Joseph, 

Ivamy, George, , 

Austen, Ann, 

Hill, Sarah, 

Beaumont, Rev. J., M.D., 

Early, John, 

Hill, Eliza, 

Taylor, Ann Hill, 

Naylor, Ann, 

Potter, Samuel, 

Kirkland, Ann,! 

Elam, Rev. John , 

Barritt, Mrs, 

Webster, John, , 

Moore, Ann, 

Davies, James Henry, 

Bradshaw, Hannah, 

Dove, Rev. Thomas, 

Jones, Charlotte, , 

Worth, Mary, 

Malkin, Elijah, , 

Wilton, Richard, , 

Webb, Mary, , 

Linley, John, 

Dobson, John, , 

Cordeux, Mrs Anna, 

Kaye, Matthew, 

Whitehead, Sarah Jane, 

Rowe, George, 

Biddulph, Sampson, 

Bealey, Mrs D., 

Osborn, George, 

Parker, Elizabeth, 

Power, Margaret, 

Nelson, Mary Bailey, 

Bond, Jane Ellen, 

Calvert, Elizabeth, 

Felvus, Elizabeth, 

Parsons, Charlotte, , 

Wilkinson, Grace Elizabeth 

Bramwell, John, , 

Jackson, Rev. Daniel, 

Spanton, Robert, 

Morley, Mrs, 

Haigh, John, 

Corderoy, Mary,.. 



Date of Death. 



Age. 



May 9, 
October 5, 
November 30, 
February 25, 
March 5, 
October 6, 
June 6, 
January 4, 
October 23, 
April 17, 
October 22, 
January 3, 
January 28, 
August 31, 
September 9, 
December 24, 
June 15, 

November 19, 
December 30, 
September 8, 
December 4, 
January 21, 
November 12, 
November 12, 
December 11, 
January 17, 
March 29, 
March 14, 
April 25, 
June 22, 
October 16, 
March 25, 
July, 
July is, 
December 1, 
November 10, 
November 28, 
September 16, 
August 8, 
December 17, 
October 25, 
December 11, 
April 2, * 
February 23, 
May 30, 
December 22, 
October 24, 
December 11, 
May 5, 
February 1, 
August 25, 
May 21, 
December 21, 

December 6, 
September 22, 
August 11, 
May 22, 
August 22, 
January 5, 
June 20, 
January 28, 
September 22, 



837 
815 
818 
866 
836 
826 
860 
863 
839 
859 
837 



825 
848 
840 
857 
835 
845 
826 

845 
847 
855 
862 



842 
830 
851 
851 
853 
831 
813 
816 
838 
859 



857 
864 
830 
832 
824 
855 
854 



829 
836 
840 
824 
865 
845 

847 

838 
833 
837 



830 
845 
847 



49 
14 



43 
38 
74 
61 
57 
3 1 
76 
62 
36 
5i 
43 
76 
63 
66 



87 
60 

79 
49 
65 
49 
63 
7i 
26 
61 
76 
56 
21 
69 
58 
29 
76 
57 
73 
83 



64 



70 
72 
36 
74 



4i 

52 
37 
40 
68 
69 

85 
89 
76 



Wes. Met A. Mag- 
Year. Page. 

1839 
1817 
1817 
1866 
1836 
1828 
1862 



1840 
1846 
1850 
1826 
1853 
1843 
1857 
1835 
1850 
1827 
1846 
1851 
1855 
1863 
1857 



1S32 

1855 
1854 
i860 
1831 
1813 



1865 
1827 
1820 
1856 

1859 
1865 

1831 
1833 
1825 

1855 
1855 



1831 

1839 
1840 
1825 
1865 
1849 

1851 

1839 
1836 
1837 
1858 
1847 
1830 
1848 
1850 



Index. 



411 



Hymn, 



343* 

343* 

346* 

346* 

346 

346 

346* 

346* 

346 

346 

346* 

346* 

346* 

35o 

360 

367 

367 

567 

37 1 

373* 

373 

373 * 
373* 

373* 

373* 

373* 

384* 

384 

384 

385 

385 

385* 

385* 

386 

386 

386 

386 

386* 



398 

403 

404 

404* 

404 

405 

405* 

405* 

405* 

405* 

405 

407 

408 

4i5 

421 

421* 

421* 

421 

421 

421* 

426 

428 

43o 

43o* 



Name. 



Partridge, Mary, 

Field, Elizabeth, 

Rylatt, Elizabeth, 

Stone, Penelope, , 

Lessey, Martha, 

Allen, Mrs Richard, 

Beckwith, Richard, 

Starkey, Thomas, 

Reynolds, Rev. John, 

Dalby, Frances, 

Kirkham, William, 

Roulston, William, 

Stephenson, Ann, 

Mills, Hannah, 

Wedgwood, Fanny, 

Shaw, Ann, 

Musgrave, James, 

Pennington, Ann, 

Agar, Mrs Joseph, 

Gaskell, George B., 

Dickinson, Eleanor, 

Griffith, Rev. Walter,.. 

Bancroft, Maria, 

Fell, Mrs, 

Rowe, Martha, 

Poole, Mary, 

Smith, Jane Sanderson, 

Waiters, John, 

Pope, Isaac, 

West, Elizabeth, 

Rowbotham, Mary, 

Paxton, James, 

Nicholson, Ann, 

Benson, Sarah, 

Johnson, Rev. Robert,... 

Benson, Rev. Joseph, , 

Scott, James, , 

Kittle, Rev. Samuel, 

Workman, Catherine,... 

Bond, James, , 

James, John, 

Charles, Emma Ann, 

Rhodes, Sarah, , 

Waddington, John,., , 

Pearse, William, , 

Hay, Mrs, 

Taylor, Leah, , 

Collier, John, , 

Arrive, Elizabeth, , 

Harrison, William, 

Meek, Martha, 

Witty, Sarah, , 

Anderson, Rev. John, , 

Pearson, Sarah, , 

Smith, Mrs Jos., 

Longden, Matthew, , 

Ormerod, Mrs, , 

Vasey, Margaret, , 

Hall, Agnes, 

Glad well, John, ... 

Hulme, Rev. Charles...... 

Thomas, Sally, 

M'Allum, DanielD.,M.D. 
Goddard, Samuel R., 







1 


IVes. Meth. Ma?. 


Date of Death. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 




T C T , 

1015 


34 


1818 


°75 


WLiuuer 0, 
-November 10, 


1864 


62 


1864 


06 


i860 


71 


1862 




December 22, 




74 


1842 




1'idy *20, 


1 816 


1816 


863 


April 25, 
February 2, 


1836 




1836 




.1849 


74 

78 


1849 


54 1 


May 11, 


1847 


1853 


708 


J une 22, 


1854 


80 


1854 


860 


Ma v 




34 
84 


1855 


760 


September 26, 


I 859 


i860 




July 5> 

December 3, 


T QrQ 
IOjO 


85 


1861 


91 


A °4/ 


43 


1851 


811 


^larch 27, 




7i 




500 


July 15, 


io 35 


37 


1835 


727 


June 6, 


t Q,. 
IO04 


65 
67 
68 


1855 


676 


T%A A 
IO44 


1847 


945 


June ^' 


t86-> 
iou 3 


1864 






1841 


77 


1850 


1131 


AT a rrh 


i860 


36 
68 


1862 


397 


November 26 


1815 


1819 


686 


January 3^> 


1825 


62 


1827 


157 


January 2^ 
September 15, 


io 37 




1837 


159 


.0,, 
1844 


61 


1845 


186 


September 16, 


1818 


34 


1819 


63 


June 13, 


1844 
44 


63 


1844 


775 


December 9, 


I02Q. 


24 


1830 


138 j 


November 24, 


l86l 


85 


1862 


1054 


December 28, 


J 837 


37 


1840 


720 


March 15* 


1830 


3° 


1831 


524 


October 23^ 




62 


1834 


493 


January 13, 


1017 


46 


1819 




February 13) 




56 




336 


January 3, 


IOIO 


5i 


1 810 


495 






65 


1830 




February 16, 


l82I 


73 


1822 


77 


February 20, 


1848 


62 


1848 


687 


March 30, 


l8l8 


43 


1820 


249 


June 24, 


T p F o 

1050 


33 


i860 


1053 


January 3* 


l8 33 


87 

88 


1835 


812 


January 26, 


*857 


1857 


384 


October 29, 


1003 


22 


1866 


1147 


January 3, 


1830 


30 


1831 


600 


November 28, 


i860 


78 


1863 


186 


June 1, 




75 




804 


November 11, 


1866 


92 


1866 


192 


May 17, 


1861 


76 


1862 




April 15, 
August 26, 


1850 


75 


1853 


5 21 


Iolo 


69 


1820 


375 


October 20, 


io 34 


47 


z 835 


79 


April 17, 
September 3, 


1841 


74 


1841 


620 


1838 


62 


1840 


378 


April 11, 
February 17, 


1840 


49 


1846 


421 


1827 


1827 


137 


November 2, 


1839 


59 


1840 


53 


December 31, 


1842 


43 


1843 


246 


September 7, 


1858 


1861 


93 


March 16, 


1855 


65 


1856 


958 


May 7, 


1864 


71 

38 


1864 


863 


February 17, 


1841 


1843 


980 


November 13, 


1823 


34 


1825 


5 


August 25, 


1840 


50 


1840 


870 


July 2, 
March 14, 


1827 


33 


1829 


10 


1865 


74 


1866 


474 



412 



Index. 



Hymn. 



434 

434 

434 

434* 

434* 

43 6 

437 

482 

482 

482 

482* 

484 

494 

497 

498 

498 

498 

499 * 
499 

499 * 

499 

499 

500 

500* 

501 

503 

503 

5io 

526 

537 

537. 

537„ 

537 

537. 

537 

537 

537 ¥ 

537 ' 

537 

540 

54i 

543 

544 

556 

556 

559 

576 

578 

581 

581 



589 

592* 

592 

592* 

592 

595 



Name. 



Gladwin, Georgiana, 

Horrill, John, 

Ballah, Rebecca, 

Cameron, Louisa, 

Marsden, Lewis, 

Ripley, John, 

Stockdale, Elizabeth, 

Caws, Mrs, 

Day, Mrs Jane, 

Wade, Richard, 

Hirst, Hannah, 

Lewis, Watkin, 

Caudler, W., 

Beacham, Francis, 

Spencer, Mrs, 

Fison, Mrs M. M., 

Smedley, Matilda, , 

Buttle, Richard, 

Clark, Jane, 

Holland, Nancy, , 

Newton, Mrs L., , 

Palmer, Thomas, 

Day, Isabella, 

Turner, Sarah, 

Simpson, Samuel, 

Wilkinson, John, 

Middleton, John, 

Bunting, Jabez, D.D.,. 

Harwood, Richard, 

Brocas, Thomas, 

Clendinnen, Rev. J. C.,... 
Wilton, John, 

Dillon, Mrs John, 

Jackson, Elizabeth, 

Turner, Sarah, 

Worth, Mary, 

By water, Mrs, 

Whiting, Sarah, 

Ward, Michael, 

Marris, John, 

Kiddear, Joseph, 

Agar, Benjamin, 

Jobson, Elizabeth, 

Gill, Hugh, 

Haldom, Sarah, 

Entwisle, Rev. Joseph,.... 

Pearson, Rev. John M.,... 

Nott, George, 

Watson, John, 

Dixon, John, 

Hamer, Anne, 

Mollard, Rev. John, 

Poles, Mr, 

Lucas, Catherine, 

Clulow, Thomas, 

West, Rev. Daniel, 

Caborn, James, , 

Oakden, Anna, , 

Naylor, William, 

Smith, Ann, 

Crowther, Rev. Jonathan 

Bnce, Elizabech, 

Stephens, William, 

Thurlow, Lancelot,... , 









Wes. Meth. Maz. 


Date of Dea 


tn. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 


November 1, 


1832 


26 


10 33 


382 


Au trust Q. 


1840 


4 1 


1841 


861 


May 9, 


1849 


22 


10 54 


57 2 


July 31, 
February 13, 


1847 


23 


1848 


219 


18=4. 


36 


i8ce 


575 


February 16, 


1829 


26 


l8°o 


82 


April 27, 
September 16, 


1840 


29 


1841 


5°3 


1854 


86 


1855 


q6 


August 10, 


1845 


50 


1846 


IIO 


March 6 


1849 


79 


1849 


D 55 


May 1, 


1861 


7 A 


1864 


37° 


April 3, 


i860 


84 


1 86 1 


1141 


August 29, 


1838 


70 




956 


December 4, 


1862 


60 

86 


1864 


957 


February 6, 


i8a7 


185° 


5 6 7 


June 26, 
December 30, 


1823 




1824 


62 


1861 


30 


1862 


D u 4 


August 24, 


1834 


48 


1837 




November 16, 


1827 


37 


1828 


710 


October 5, 


1840 


3 1 


1544 


278 


^lay 17, 


1821 


3 2 


1822 


685 


December 20, 


1832 


57 


183-5 
xo oo 


236 

qa8 
94° 


September 2, 


1844 




March 23, 


1858 


62 


1858 


767 


December 6, 




47 


1841 


2 43 


March 30, 


1862 


87 

/ 


1863 


95° 


March 3, 


I 795 


7 1 


1810 


215 




1858 


79 




49 1 


January 16, 


1842 


60 


184 2 


243 




1818 


61 






L CUl Udl^ \Jy 


t8c:c 
• LO i»5 


04 




See 


March 13, 


1838 


67 


IQ o9 


241 


A-pril 14 


18^7 


42 


1850 




j d - ii Uc11 y 3> 


1861 


61 


IOU j 


188 




1865 


70 


1866 


90 


1, OVC111UC1 ^U; 


1818 


7° 


182O 


773 


July 22, 


j837 


70 


1840 


199 


jNlarch 17, 
December 1, 


1846 


49 


1849 


463 


1840 


47 


1841 


15° 


October 16, 


1845 


8-> 
°j 


1846 


116 


February 20^ 


1842 


75 


I 843 


32Q 


1858 


°5 


i860 


497 


October 2 




54 


1842 


991 




1827 


74 


1828 


6c 1 
D 5o 


October 12 


1848 


88 


j.04y 


876 


December 8 


1864 


66 


1865 


192 




1850 


4 1 


tScc 


293 


To nil 5) T\T *> 


i8r5 


74 


1825 


287 


April 18, 
December 5 ? 


1824 


79 


1825 


217 


1814 


37 


1817 


646 


December 15^ 


1847 


34 


1848 


606 


]\Iay 26^ 


1863 


45 


1866 


I066 


February 16, 


1837 


1837 


39 2 


February ^-9? 


1842 


07 


1846 


531 


December 20, 


1844 


43 


1845 


292 


February 24, 


1857 


4i 


1857 


843 


October 4, 


1857 


85 
78 


1857 


1141 


January 22, 


1856 


i860 


282 


July 10, 


1868 


85 


1868 


945 


January 26, 


1824 


61 


1824 


498 


January 16, 


1856 


61 


1856 


191 


April 12, 


1837 


59 


1837 


628 


February 20, 


1853 


72 


1853 


573 


February 24, 


i860 


62 


i36o 


1 479 



Index. 



413 



Hymn. Name. 

599 Walkington, Ann, 

615 Hirst, Harriet, 

615 Cassell, John Henry, 

616 Booth, Fanny, 

616 Osborn, George, 

616 Hatton, Jane, 

616 Lofthouse, Betsy, 

616* Newton, Hannah, 

623 Hickling, Mrs John, 

624 Wardley, Jane, 

624 Edgar, Rev. David, 

624 Lessey, Rev. Theophilus,. 

624* Dove, Christopher, 

624 Nesbitt, Rev. John, 

624* Wellard, Millenda, 

624* Kemp, Matthew, 

626 Curnock, Rev. Nehemiah, 

629 Lacy, Thomas, 

640 Cordeioy, Hannah, 

640 Robinson, Mrs, 

640 Croggon, W. Oke, 

641 Holmes, Thomas, 

641 Corson, James, 

646 AlKENHEAD, Rev. JOHN,.... 

660 Spence, Mrs, 

660 Rowe, Mary Elizabeth,... 

660 Benson, Walker B., 

660 Neilson, Mrs, 

663^ Middleton, Robert, 

663* Wrangham, Mrs, 

663^ Mathison, Mrs, 

669 Howe, George , 

669* Smart, Rev. John, 

669, Greenwood, Luke, , 

669 Rogers, Margaret, , 

669 Fishwick, William, , 

669 Geake, Elizabeth, , 

669 Wilkinson, Michael, 

669 Pattison, Rev. Richard,. 

671 Simpson, Rev. Joseph, 

674 Chad wick, Mrs, 

674 Ridley, Henry 

^74 Jinkin, Samuel, 

699 Severs, John, 

702 Arrive, Elizabeth, 

702 Whittingham, Charlte. 

714* Walker, John, .... 

714 Jeffs, John 

714* Hawkins, George, 

714* Stark, Mrs, 

714* Hart, Emma, 

714* Vey, Vii tue, 

714 Laws, Mrs Robert, 

714* Leigh, John, 

714* Peart, Mary, 

714 Kemp, Rev. John, 

714 Gill, Jane,. 

715 Hoole, Eliza 

717 James, Rev. John, 

723 Allwood, William, 

724 Burnett. William, 

724* Brentnall, Hannah, 

725* Rishton, John, 

725 Smith, Mrs, M . 









JVes. Meth. Mag. 


Date of Death. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 


January 24, 


1857 


55 


1857 


288 


October 20, 


1864 


78 


1864 


1152 


March 5, 
September 17, 


1837 


49 


1839 


967 


1856 


49 


1856 


ZI 43 


May 5, 
December 11, 


1836 


72 


1839 


802 


1845 


9 1 


1849 


9 


November 17, 


1837 


1840 


383 


May 26, 


1842 


38 


1842 


421 


July 18, 


1812 


45 


1813 
1842 


613 


June 8, 


1842 




695 


August 12, 


1853 


37 


1854 


852 


June 10, 
December 24, 


1841 


54 


1841 




1854 


73 


1856 


7 ll 
976 


January 18, 


1858 


82 


1858 


848 


May 14, 


1856 


80 


1858 


187 


March 6, 


1859 


84 


1861 


668 


July 26, 


1869 


58 


1869 




May 18, 
February 10, 


1821 


60 


1822 


031 
7 6 5 


1856 


26 


1856 


October, 
January 30, 


1865 


89 


1866 


764 


1854 


61 


J 854 


478 


August 19, 


1862 


72 


1865 


1146 


March 21, 


1857 


46 


J 859 


283 


March 12, 


1835 


61 


^37 


5 6 7 


January 14, 


181.5 


62 


1815 


937 


January 28, 


1847 


27 


1847 


410 


February 24, 


1864 


70 


1864 


57 6 


February 15, 


1865 


3i 


1866 


284 


November 9, 


1856 


90 


1858 


10 


September 4, 


1862 


1862 


1056 


September 5, 


1840 




x 843 


363 


February 21, 


1831 


86 


1831 


207 


November 12, 


1854 


39 


T 859 


301 


October 29, 


1855 


J 857 


670 


December 12, 


1829 


52 
48 


1830 


140 


December 26, 


1839 


1842 


55i 


January 25, 


1844 


81 


1844 


33i 


December 29, 


1859 


80 


1861 


1050 


December 29, 


1839 


69 


1842 


178 


April 12, 


1852 


27 


I 855 


660 


September 26, 


1815 


82 


1816 


443 


February 27, 


1850 


82 


J 855 


1060 


June 28, 
November 24, 


1852 


62 


I 855 


DDI 


1839 


77 


1842 


459 


August 26, 


1818 


69 


1820 


37 6 


September 9, 


1840 


45 


1841 


328 


January 21, 


1843 


46 


1846 


316 


November 26, 


1849 


59 


1850 


649 


February 7, 


1854 


24 


J 857 


285 


November 6, 


1858 


69 


i860 


971 
864 


June 11, 
September 4, 


1865 




1005 


1842 


42 


J o45 


10 57 


April 20, 


1846 




1040 


1 24 1 


March 21, 


i860 


60 


i860 


480 


August 9, 


1840 


43 


1840 


864 


May 4, 


1861 


84 


1863 


1062 


February 6, 


1842 


24 


1842 


247 


March 13, 


1851 


4i 


1851 


504 


November 6, 


1832 


46 


1834 


85 


February 27, 


1852 


7i 


1855 


668 


February 15, 


1849 


69 


1855 


185 


January 27, 


1864 


79 


1864 


383 


January 2, 


1826 


66 


1827 


64 


July 17, 


1844 


69 


1844 


946 



4m 



Index. 



Hymn. 



725 

728 

728 

728* 

728* 

728* 

728* 

728 

728 

730 

730 

73£ * 
733 

733* 

733 

733* 

733 

733* 

733 

733 

733* 

733 

733 

734 * 
734 

734 

734 

734* 

734 

734 

734 

734 

734 

734 

734* 

735 

737 

748 

75o 

750 

75i 

757 

757 

757 

757 



Name. 

Heald, Anne, 

Wilson, Rev. Joseph, 

Keith Harriet, 

Reid, Harriet, 

Williams, Mary, 

Meek, William, 

Thorley, Mrs, ..... 

Stanley, Mrs, 

Nelson, Ellen, 

Sanderson, Ann, 

Pike, William, .. „ 

Buckley, Francis, 

Blumer, George, 

Green, Thomas, 

Roberts, Miss, ..^ 

Smith, Mary Jane, 

Banks, Baker, 

Finley, Rosanna, 

Hester, Rev. George P.,. 

Vivers, Rev. William, 

Dennis, Benjamin, 

M'Cornock, Rev. William, 

Batty, Elizabeth, 

Lesson, Rev. John, .. 

Hunter, William, 

Cooke, Corbett, 

Prescott, Mary, 

Davidson, Alexander, 

Moulton, Mary,.... 

Snowden, Sarah, 

West, Mary F., 

Entwisle, Lucy, 

Stevens, Sarah, 

Lidgett, John, 

Mayson, Hannah, 

Bateson, Thomas, 

Bulmer, Agnes, 

Bunting, W. M., 

Browne, Hugh, 

Balls, William, 

Slater, Charlotte, 

Downes, Phillis, 

Hudson, Elizabeth, 

West, John, . 

Oakes, Letitia, .« 









Wes. Meth. Maz. 


Date of Death. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 


December 30, 


1826 


30 


1827 


286 


September 15, 


i860 


79 


1863 


103 


June 20, 


1 84.1 


20 


1841 


860 


June 20, 


1841 


20 


1841 


1034 


April 5, 


1842 


21 


1842 


429 


September 9, 


1841 


67 


1844 


447 


August 23, 


1843 


55 


1846 


1049 


January 18, 


1851 


02 


1855 


762 
858 


January 3, 


1830 


St 


1830 


May 4, 


1847 


31 


X lf 


1245 


May 11, 


1861 


62 


1863 


475 


November 4, 


1850 


3 6 


1855 


574 


March 3, 
September 25, 


1848 


24 


1848 


807 


1857 


42 


1857 


1142 


March 5, 


1844 




1844 


336 


May, 


1857 


*5 


1859 


190 


February 7, 


1840 


73 


1842 


637 


December 10, 


1841 


J 9 


1844 


630 


September 7, 


1862 


30 


1863 


1151 


September 1, 


1850 


50 


1850 


1 104 


February 28, 


1859 


70 


1859 


575 


January 7, 
November 6, 


1834 


07 


1834 


718 


1814 


3° 


1815 


290 


June 9, 


1850 


27 


1851 


889 


December 28, 


1857 


74 


i860 


378 


May 16, 
September 15,. 


1866 


78 


1866 


941 


1859 


73 


1860 


381 


February 13,. 


2858 


76 


1858 


575 


March 8, 


1862 


42 


1863 


285 


April 7, 
August 27. 


1835 


100 


1837 


899 


1829 


60 


1831 


380 


October 16^ 


1834 




1834 


880 


March, 


18 1 7 


47 


1820 


136 


June 17, 


1861 


00 


1864 


10 


March 31^ 


1862 


62 


1865 


3" 


May 24, 
August 30, 


2S40 


40 


1842 


io 43 


1836 


61 


1840 


806 


November 13, 


1866 


61 




November 28, 


1848 


26 


1853 


668 


December 27, 


1852 


58 


1853 


385 


April 20, 


1840 


40 


1842 


906 


December 12, 


1836 


1837 


234 


September 20,. 


1834 


59 


1838 


171 


June 1, 


1838 


77 


1838 


716 


September 14, 


1848 


85 


1848 


1359 



Hymn—" Not a Cloud doth Arise, " &c. 



* Eddy, Amy, 

* Harland, Mary,. 

* Tyrer, John, 

* Keith, Harriet, 

* Holloway, Nancy, 

* Fowler, Mrs, 

Nelson, Mrs,. 

Horton, Mrs, 

Harris, William, 

* Dobbs, Joseph, ...... 

Hickson, Lois, 

* Jackson, Holtby, 

* I Blagborough, Hannah,.... 

* Finley, Rosanna...... 

I Cousins, Richard, 

* ,Warhurst, Thomas, 



April 16, 
March 31, 

June 20, 
February 20, 
May 15,- 
May 21, 
June 6, 
November 28, 
July 27, 
December 24. 
March 4, 
April 7, 
December 10, 
March 24, 
February 24, 



18 16 : 
1841 I 

1841 I 
1840 
1842 

1842 i 
1842 ! 
1842 I 
1842 j 

1840 1 
1844 1 
1844 ' 

1841 ! 
1844 1 





1817 


374 


45 


1841 


502 


75 


1841 


644 


20 


1-841 


860 


50 


1841 


1032 


72 


1842 


632 




1842 


781 


38 


1843 


1044 


95 


1843 


68 


70 


1843 


243 


43 


1843 


983 


80 


1844 


336 


78 


1844 


427 


1844 


631 
84 


99 


1845 


72 


1845 


942 



Index. 



415 



Name, 



Horne, Ann, 

Nother, William, 

Mole, Richard R., 

Wright, Joseph 

Crossley, Mrs N., 

Proctor, Bryan, 

Birch, Miss, 

Staton, Elizabeth,.. . 

Wright, Hannah, 

Lund, Benjamin, 

Robinson, Mary, ........... 

Bolton, Ann, 

Thomas, Mrs, 

Kemp, Elizabeth 

Webster, Isabella, 

Moor, Ann, 

Swift, Ann 

Wynn, Miss H. r 

Armstrong, Margaret,.... 

Bray shay, Mrs, 

Cheesewright, Ann G.,.. 

Allsop, Mary, , 

Smith, Thomas, 

Allen, Jane, 

Punshon, Maria Ann,. 

Welch, Charles, 

Rudkin, Elizabeth, 









Wes.Meth. Mae 


Date of Death. 


Age. 


Year. 


Page. 


August 14, 


xSig 


25 


1822 


16 


March 16, 


1840 


66 


1840 


429 


March 27, 


1840 


45 


1840 


430 


June 25, 


1840 


48 


1840 


617 


January 8, 


1824 


76 


1824 


496 


January 26 > 


1827 


92 


1828 


441 


November 22, 


1845, 


1846 


409 


October 19, 


1844 


27 


1846 


96 


December 17, 


1846 


70 


1847 


620 


May 15, 
September ig, 


1847 


71 


1848 


100 


1847 


57 


1848 


339 


December 10, 


1847 


75 


1848 


573 


May 24, 


1845 




1848 


1060 


May 19, 


1847 


33 


1848 


1284 


January 15, 


1847 


24 


1849 


540 


June 2, 


1846 


24 


1849 


57i 


April 3, 


1851 


6.6 


1852 


401 


May 26, 


1851 




1852 


816 


October 20, 


1852 


54 


1853 


80 


January 20, 
Good Friday, 


1855 


69 


1855 


3.83 


1850 


53 


1855 


1057 


May 26, 


1849 


64 


1855 


IQ59 


1845 


73 


1857 


766 


February 26, 


1858 


41 


1858 


479 


November, 


1858 


35 


1859 


1068 


December 13, 


1855 


62 


1861 


880 


April 26, 


1862 


71 


1864 


956 



Hymn — " In Age and Feebleness extreme," &c. 



Young, William, , 

Jones, William, 

Atmore, Rev. Charles,. 

Gordon, Mrs M. A., 

Gillings, Elizabeth,.... 

Wood, James, 

Burgess, Mrs, 

West, Thomas (Hull) 

Meek, Joseph, 

Reynolds, Mary, 

Raston, Mrs, 

Odgers, Mary, 

Lacy, Hannah, , 

Williamson, Susannah 

Foster, Penelope, — 

Gibbs, Sarah, , 

Silkstone, William, 

Wightman, Mrs, 

Hilliard, Mr H., 



August 30, 


1823 


74 


1824 


724 


January 31, 


1842 


77 


1842 


246 


July i, 


1826 


66 


1845 


547 


January S y 


1847 


Zi 


1847 


7 2 3 


January i6> 


1849 


60 


1849 


236 


April, 


1849 


72 


1850 


30 


May 3, 


1848 


81 


1851 


533 


November 6> 


1852 


86 


1853 


176 


September 7, 


1849 


73 


1853 


504 


January 3, 


1854 




1854 


287 


December 28, 


1851 




1854 


881 


December 1, 


1851 


70 


1855 


665 


November 25, 


1852 


88 


1856. 


763 


April 19, 


1857 


73 


1859 


188 


January 25, 


1854 


7 2 


1859 


"39 


August 2, 


1861 


85 


1861 


960 


August 15, 


1858 


82 


1861 


"39 


June 15, 
January 10, 


i860 


85 


1862 


267 


1864 


95 


' 1864 


382 



Hymns translated by John Wesley, viz. : — From the German, Hymns 23, 26, 133* 
189, 190, 196, 210, 240, 241, 279, 338, 339, 344, 350, 353, 373, 341, 492, 494, 586, 610, 
673, 674 ; from the French, Hymn 285 ; from the Spanish, Hymn 437. 

Hymns inserted in the Collection after Mr Wesley's death, and before the Supple- 
ment was added, viz. : — Hymns 38, 39, 66, 90, 97, 107, 111, 119, 120, 143, 149, 162, 
169, 213, 228, 253, 257, 263, 276, 490, 500. 



416 



THE POETICAL WORKS OF JOHN AND CHARLES WESLEY. 



Date of 
fir-t Pub- 
lication. 



I73» 
1739 

1740 

1 741 

1 741 

1742 

1742 
1742 

1743 

1743 

1744 

1744 

1744 

1744 
1744 
1745 

T- 745 

1745 
1745 
1745 

1746 
1746 

1746 

1746 

1746 

1746 
1746 

1746 
1746 

1747 
1748 



Title. 



Collection of Psalms and Hymns, by John Wesley, 

Hymns and Sacred Poems, by John and Charles 
Wesley, ....... 

Hymns and Sacred Poems, by John and Charles 
Wesley, 

Collection of Psalms and Hymns, by John and 
Charles Wesley, 

Hymns on God's Everlasting Love, two parts, by 
Charles Wesley, ...... 

Hymns and Sacred Poems, by John and Charles 
Wesley, 

Collection of German Hymns, by John Wesley, 

A Collection of Thirty-six Tunes, set to music, as 
they are sung at the Foundery, 

Collection of Psalms and Hymns, enlarged, by 
John and Charles Wesley, .... 

Poems on several occasions, 2d edit., by Samuel 
Wesley, 

Hymns for Times of Trouble and Persecution, by 
John and Charles Wesley, 

A Collection of Moral and Sacred Poems, 3 vols., 
by John Wesley, ..... 

Hymns for the Nativity of our Lord, by Charles 
Wesley, ....... 

Hymns for the Watch-night, by Charles Wesley, 

Funeral Hymns, by Charles Wesley, . 

Hymns for Times of Trouble, for the year 1745, 
by Charles Wesley, ..... 

A Short View of the Differences between the Mo- 
ravian Brethren and John and Charles Wesley, 

Hymns on the Lord's Supper, by Charles Wesley, 

A 'Word in Season, &c. , by John Wesley, 

Hymns for Times of Trouble, &c, 2d edit., addi- 
tional, by Charles Wesley, , 

Hymns for Times of Trouble, by Charles Wesley, 

Hymns (9) and Prayers (4) for Children, [John 
and Charles Wesley], .... 

Gloria Patri, &c, Hymns to the Trinity, by 
Charles Wesley, . 3 . . 

Hymns on the great Festivals and other occa- 
sions, by Charles Wesley, with music by Lampe 
[2d edit., 1753L ■ • . ; 

Hymns of Petition and Thanksgiving for the Pro- 
mise of the Father, Whit-sunday, by John and 
Charles Wesley, 

Hymns for Ascension Day, by Charles Wesley, 

Hymns for our Lord's Resurrection, by Charles 
Wesley, ....... 

Graces before and after Meat, by Charles Wesley, 

Hymns for the Public Thanksgiving, October 9, 
1746, by Charles Wesley 

Hymns for those that seek and those that have 
Redemption in the Blood of Jesus Christ, by 
Charles Wesley, ..... 

Hvmns on his Marriage, unpublished, by Charles 
Wesley, ....... 



No. of 
pages. 


Size. 


No. of 
Hymns. 


84 


i2mo 


70 


223 


i2mo 


139 


209 


i2mo 


96 


126 


i2mo 


165 


84 


iamo 


38 


304 


121710 


J 55 


36 


i2mo 


24 




i2mo 




*3° 


i2mo 


I 3 8 


33 2 


i2mo 


104 


47 


I2.T10 


33 


1008 


I2H10 


213 


24 


i2mo 


18 


12 


i2mo 


11 


24 


i2mo 


16 


69 


i2mo 


15 


24 


i2mo 


6 


141 


121T10 


166 


8 


i2mo 


2 


22 


i2mo 


15 


12 


i2mo 


6 


12 


i2mo 


9 


12 


i2mo 


24 


64 


4to 


24 


36 


i2mo 


32 


12 


121110 


7 


20 


i2mo 


16 


12 


i2mo 


26 


12 


i2mo 


7 


72 


i2mo 


52 






' *7 



Descriptive Titles, &c. 



417 



Date of 




No. of 




No. of 


first Pub- 
lication. 


Title. 


pages. 


Size. 




Hymns. 


1749 




Hymns on occasion of his being prosecuted in Ire- 
land as a Vagabond, unpublished, by Charles 
Wesley. 








1749 


Hymns and Sacred Poems, 2 vols., by Charles 










668 


i2mo 


455 


1749 


Hymns extracted from the Brethren's Book, by 










12 


i2mo 


20 


I750 


Hymns for New Year's Day, 1751, by Charles 












11 


i2mo 


7 


1750 


Hymns occasioned by the Earthquake, March 8, 


24 


i2mo 


19 


1753 


Select Hymns for the use of Christians of all De- 








nominations, by John Wesley, . . . 


i57 


i2mo 


149 


1753 


Hymns and Spiritual Songs intended for the use 




116 


of real Christians, &c, .. .. 


132 


i2mo 


1755 


An Epistle to the Rev. Mr John Wesley, by 








Charles Wesley, . 


16 


i2mo 


1 


1755 


An Epistle to the Rev. Mr George Whitefield, by 








Charles Wesley [first published in 1771], . 


16 


i2mo 


1 


1756 


Hymns occasioned by the Earthquake, 2d edit.. 
Hymns for the Year 1756, particularly for the 


36 


i2mo 


22 


1756 








Fast Day, February 6, by Charles Wesley, 


24 


i2mo 


17 


1758 


Hymns of Intercession for all Mankind, by 








Charles Wesley, . . . . . 


■ 

34 


i2mo 


40 


1758 


Hymns for the use of Methodist Preachers, by 










12 


i2mo 


10 . 


1759 


Funeral Hymns, enlarged, by Charles Wesley, 


70 


i2mo 


43 


1759 


Hymns on the expected Invasion, by Charles 












12 


i2mo 


8 


1759 


Hymns to be used on the Thanksgiving Day, 








November 29, and after it, by Charles Wesley, 
Hymns for those to whom Christ is all in all, by 


24 


i2mo 


15 


1761 










144 


i2mo 


134 


1761 


Select Hymns, with Tunes annext, 


318 


i2mo 


132 


1762 


Short Hymns on select Passages of Holy Scrip- 








ture, 2 vols., by Charles Wesley, 


824 


i2mo 


2,030 


1763 


Hymns for Children, by Charles Wesley, 


84 


x2mo 


100 


T 7 6 5 


Hymns on the Gospels in MS., by Charles Wesley, 








1767 


Hymns for the use of Families, and on various 








occasions, by Charles Wesley, . 


176 


i2mo 


188 


1767 


Hymns on the Trinity (including Hymns and 










Prayers to the Trinity), by Charles Wesley, 


132 


i2mo 


182 


1772 


Preparation for Death, in several Hymns, by 










46 


i2mo 


40 


177 


A Hymn praying for his Brother's long life, by 
Charles Wesley. 






1780 


Collection of Hymns for the use of the People 












504 


i2mo 


525 


1780 


Hymns written in the time of the Tumults, June 








1780, by Charles AVesley, ...» 


J 9 




*3 


1781 


Protestant Association, written in the midst of the 










24 


i2mo 




1782 


Hymns for the Nation, and Hymns for the Na- 
tional Fast Day, February 8, 1782, by Charles 








Wesley, 


47 


i2mo 




1785 


Prayers for condemned Malefactors, by Charles 










12 


i2mo 


10 




By ISAAC WATTS, D.D. 








1705 


Horse Lyricse : Poems of the Lyric kind, in three 






136 






299 


I2H10 


1707 


Hymns and Spiritual Songs, in three Books, 


I2H10 


697 


1719 


New Version of the Psalms, .... 




i2mo 


150 



2 D 



4i8 



NCIDENTS NOT IN THE PREVIOUS INDEX. 



Hy. Name. Page 

i Mather, Rev. Alexander, .... 4 

1 Lawson, John, ...... 5 

I North American Indian Chief, * . . . 5 

9 Bradburn, Rev. Samuel, . . . .10 

12 Calvin, Bartholomew, North American Indian, . . 11 

17 Fletcher, Rev. John, , . 15, 216, 221, 257, 402 

18 Pearse, Thomas, Cornwall, . . r . 16 
22 Wesley, Samuel, A.M., Rector of Epworth, . . 18 
28 Summers, Thomas, D.D., . . . . 24 
30 Wesley, Rev. Charles, Notices of, 25, 45, 50, 57, 71, 94, 120, 

142, 163, 291, 303, 380, 395 
37 Ranson, Rev. Henry, . . ... 30 

43 Jackson, Rev. Thomas, ... 36, 95, 102, 395 

44 Young American Lady, . . . . -37 

48 Coles, Betty, . . . . . . .44 

48 Wesley, Martha, Objections to this hymn, . . 44 

51 Hutchins, Samuel, ..... 47 

59 Clarke, Dr Adam, Notices of, 52, 54, 57, 71, 189, 212, 225, 271, 

314, 326, 331, 335, 391 

61 Montgomery, James, mentioned, 51, 53, 187, 253, 267, 311, 381 
102 Damocles, Story of, ..... 79 



112 Kirk, Rev. John, Notices of, 
143 A Young Virginian, 
143 Jordan, Julia E., 
143 Beecher, Henry W T ard, Opinion of, 
147 Dawson, William, . 
163 Milton, Suggestions from, . 
168 Actress, Conversion of an, . 

190 German Sunday-school Superintendent, Anecdote of a : 
202 Remarkable Conversions in Jamaica, 



82, 94, 165 
96 
97 
97 

99> 339, 35i ? 382 
106, 140, 145, 278 
107 
116 
128 



Incidents, &c. 


419 


Hy. Name. 


Page 


oaa C'oIpv'q Anppdrktf* r\n r^Tirict all in all 
Zv^y V^VJXCj' o xj.lICCU.ULC Ull V^llllol «lli 111 cill, 


130 


0\ A Pavenn 1? f>v Tir Pivincr tpctim r»n v of 
± ^x x aj ovjiiy i\cvi x^ i , x-'yuig LCoLiiiiuiiy v/i, 


140 


2IQ GwennaD Pit Cornwall described 

V*i * ' V* 1IUC%U J. ALj V— ' A 11 >V CLlly VIVO VI iUtU^ 


142 


Addison lVTsrvpl cmd Watte 

^-"^ J -Tl.VXlXiov'lij IVXdlVClj dliU. TV Alio, . 


145 


260 Young, Edward, referred to, 


isq. 180 


285 Byrom, Dr John, 


168 


360 Riles, Mrs, .... 


206 


373 Chappel, Benjamin, and John Wesley, 


. . . 211 


373 Brackenbury, Robert C, Esq., . 209, 


2IQ 3S7 32 £ 3C7. 4.02 
oD/> o**Oj o*>/> t" 


415 Cowper, William, . 


210 281. 283 330 


429 Scriptural Character of the Hymns, 


23s 


456 Osborn, Rev. George, D.D., 


IQ2 2A3 


456 More, Henry, D.D., 


24.3 


482 Keys, Jane, of Lurgan, 


2s0 


494 Dr Coke and Rev, Benjamin dough, 




501 Copland, Charles, of Etruria, 


2sQ 


cni TVT?i chili Georce. of Sfoclcnnrt 

XVXClwlllAl, V^i V- w 1 CI V. ^ \JX UCU^iYlJUl • 


260 


525 Newton, Rev. Robert, in America, 


268 


Caci Dpmn^tpi" Rev Dr and the Pirstpc. 

J— 'Cill LtJ It 1 , XW V • X/lj tXllKX LAIC X llttLCDj 


273 
* I O 


552 44 The Great Pan," 


278 


555 Earthquake in London in 1750, 


280 


559 Lancashire Mill Girls, 


282 


Supplement, Notice of the, 


284 


Cf>T Weslev 5*5 a mil el A 1VT inn 

■)V-f X M tol^ V , OClllllXV~l, xjL.xtX., 11111., . . 


286 


567 Addison, Joseph, 


287 


574 Fish, Henry, M.A., 


286 


580 Steele^ Ann, . 


29I 


C82 Doddridge Phillir> D D 

J-* X-'V/VXvXX 1VX£^ Vy, X 11111 11J, X-/.X_^ # , . 


2Q3 


582 A Missionary's Opinion of Heaven, 


20 A 


cR? 9tennett To<?e-nh T) T) 

SOS O t-CliilCll, Iv/oCLjAA, XJ . XJ • , . . 


on c 


585 Merrick, James, A.M., 


296 


588 Hart, Joseph, 


206 


615 Conversion of a Jewess, 


306 


616 Walker, Holroyd, of Leeds, 


3O0 


fi^A TVvnlndv Ancrnstii^ Montacme R A 


31 T 
J 11 


633 Bakewell, John, . 


3l8 


637 Rhodes, Rev. Benjamin, 




640 A Sailor's Conversion, 


3 2 ° 


640 Harrison, Sarah, . 


321 


654 Charlemagne and Dryden, 


326 



420 



Incidents, &c. 



Hy. Name. 
669 Olivers, Rev. Thomas, 
697 King George, of Fiji, and his Peopl 
699 A School Incident, 
733 Remarkable Trial at Exeter, 
733 Budgett, Samuel, of Kingswood, 
737 Bulmer, Mrs Agnes, 
748 Bunting, Rev. William Maclardie, 
755 A Cornish Funeral described, 
757 Ken, Thomas, D.D., Bishop, 
758. Roger Miller and the Evening Hymn, 

Benson, Rev. Joseph, 

Bunting, Rev. Jabez, D.D., 



Page 
3l8, 332 
345 
346 
363 
363 
373 
375 
372 
381 
385 

219, 39i, 393> 399, 401 
65,219,225,263 



PKINTED BY BALLANTYNE AND COMPANY 
EDINBURGH AND LONDON 



r 



* 



